SOUTH BEND — Read below and you’ll find help for veterans along with music, talks and many ways to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., whose national holiday is Monday.
Parking at South Bend’s Century Center, 120 S. St. Joseph St., will be free all day Monday for the events. And all events below are free to the public and in South Bend unless otherwise noted.
Today
The Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Saint Joseph County will hold its celebration services for the King holiday from 4 to 7 p.m. at The Salvation Army’s Kroc Center at Western Avenue and Chapin Street. Participants include the IMA 100 Men Choir, University of Notre Dame Voices Gospel Choir and BAD Entertainment from Elkhart. The keynote speaker will be the Rev. Terrell Jackson. There will be a free-will offering.
Monday
- Christian Life Center Church at 808 Victory St., Buchanan, will host a celebration from 10 a.m. to noon with two speakers: Dr. Arthur Culpepper, director of health services for the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, and Al Whitfield, retired high school teacher who’d experienced walking with King. A video about Rosa Parks, “Mighty Times,” will be shown.
- Exhibits and vendors from different community groups and small businesses will set up from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Century Center.
- You can register for and be screened to donate blood from 9 a.m. to noon in Century Center.
- Military veterans will find representatives from local services that help with needs including medical, mental health, counseling, homelessness, education or networking for jobs. “Embracing Our Veterans” will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Century Center. The national anthem will be sung at 10 a.m., followed by a short talk by veteran Lori Whaley.
- South Bend Chapter of the Indiana Black Expo will present the 2012 findings of IBE’s “State of Our Black Youth” report, which is an update from IBE’s report in 2007. This will be from 9:30 to 11 a.m. in Century Center.