Your Community Needs You

January 17, 2022

Your spirit of volunteerism is needed for our Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Day of Service activities. As always, our strong commitment to safety extends beyond the workplace. In light of current COVID-19 conditions in our service area, we are temporarily pausing all company-organized in-person indoor volunteer events to help reduce the spread of the disease.

As a result, for our MLK Day of Service activities, employees can volunteer at virtual or outdoor events or donate books to local organizations. Participants should also follow FirstEnergy’s health and safety protocols – such as wearing masks indoors, washing hands regularly, maintaining social distance when practical, etc.

“We are so excited to again recognize Dr. King Day of Service. FirstEnergy employees are always ready to lend a hand and help those in need in our communities, and we’re pleased to provide another opportunity for them to do so safely,” said Kristene Hawk, Human Resources representative V, and EBRG lead.

Sharing Words of Wisdom

The most iconic leader of the civil rights movement, Dr. King was a Baptist minister, spokesman and activist from 1955 until his assassination in April 1968. He advanced civil rights through nonviolence and civil disobedience, inspired by his Christian beliefs and the peaceful activism of Mahatma Gandhi who led India’s independence from British rule. Dr. King enthralled audiences with his dynamic and inspiring speeches addressing the turbulent time of the civil rights movement.

Alfred Leak Jr., lineworker A, The Illuminating Company (CEI), has brought Dr. King’s famous speeches to life through dramatization performances. For this year’s MLK Day of Service recognition, Alfred has provided an excerpt from Dr. King’s The American Dream speech that he delivered at the 1961 commencement for Lincoln University. You can view it below.