CHICAGO - People across Illinois are honoring Martin Luther King Jr. with service projects, meals and celebrations.
Monday's holiday recognizes the civil rights leader, who was born on Jan. 15, 1929. Illinois in 1973 was the first state to declare his birthday a holiday.
Valerie Jarrett was the keynote speaker at Peoria’s Public Employees for Community Concerns annual M-L-K celebration luncheon today. She is a former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, and now works for the Obama Foundation.
The King Holiday Committee of Peoria conducted a freedom march this afternoon. Participants left from Bradley University’s Garrett Cultural Center and walked to Bethel United Methodist Church. A commemorative service and awards ceremony followed.
Serve Illinois, the state's commission on volunteerism, encouraged residents to "make it a day on, not a day off."
In Chicago, the Obama Foundation teamed with a youth volunteer organization to prepare lunch for young people at a center for homeless youth. The DuSable Museum of African-American History held its annual family program with music, lectures and crafts.
Springfield's free celebration at the MassMutual Center featured local gospel choirs, dance and other performances.
The NAACP hosted its 37th annual MLK Day breakfast in Carbondale.
