Chris Rossi/The Gazette Yasmin Graham, 14, of Rockville makes cards for sick children at the National Institues of Health during community service activities in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the Universities at Shady Grove.

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Chris Rossi/The Gazette Pam Hunter, a volunteer from Kensington, helps at the community service activities in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Universities at Shady Grove in Rockville.
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Chris Rossi/The Gazette Yasmin Graham, 14, of Rockville makes cards for sick children at the National Institues of Health during community service activities in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the Universities at Shady Grove.

Chris Rossi/The Gazette Yasmin Graham, 14, of Rockville makes cards for sick children at the National Institues of Health during community service activities in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the Universities at Shady Grove.

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The room buzzed with excitement. Children peeled the backs off adhesives and attached stickers to bookmarks. Adults wrote notes in hand-made cards. Coordinators in neon shirts whipped from table to table.

The first Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event at the Universities at Shady Grove on Monday drew about 500 volunteers to participate in projects to help those in need.

Projects included packing personal hygiene kits for people in homeless shelters to writing notes to recovering servicemen and -women.

“It’s such a wonderful day,” said Yvonne Paretzky, site coordinator. “It’s the only national holiday where people are asked to do something. It’s amazing how many people come out to serve.”

The Montgomery County Volunteer Center organized other family-friendly indoor service projects at the Bethesda North Marriott and the Silver Spring Civic Center.

Last year, the event brought out 3,000 people, Paretzky said.

At Shady Grove, Faith Graham and her daughter, Yasmin Graham, 14, both of Rockville, decorated and wrote cards for ill children at the The Children’s Inn at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda.

“We’re very fortunate and there are lots of people and kids who are less fortunate than us,” Faith Graham said. “It’s really important to reach out and help those in need.”

And volunteering helps children understand it’s not all about them; they should help others, she said.

She and Yasmin participated in the day of service last year, too.

“It’s not like I’m doing something big,” Yasmin said. “It’s something small and I can still help out.”

The cards will give the ill children a bit of hope, Yasmin said.

And those spreading the joy traveled from as far away as Baltimore. Tracy Olsen, the assistant dean of students at St. Timothy’s School in Baltimore, brought 150 students, staff and faculty to the event.

The all-girls boarding school participates in volunteer events on Dr. Martin Luther King Day Jr. each year.

“We call it a day on and not a day off,” Olsen said.

After volunteering, the girls in grades nine through 12, will attend an event at Washington National Cathedral in the District.

Rabbi Adam Raskin, of Har Shalom in Potomac, brought about 50 people from his synagogue.

“I don’t know how often people of different backgrounds have the opportunity to get together and do something meaningful,” Raskin said, looking at the crowd. “It could so easily be a day to sleep in...to see such a throng of people bringing hope to the sick and soldiers; it’s just a wonderful way to spend the day.”

abryant@gazette.net