Celebrating the Spirit of MLK Through Community Service
In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Herman Miller employees gathered this week to paint soup bowls for the annual West Michigan Soup’s On For All (SOFA) fundraiser, which helps nourish families and individuals in the area. Proceeds benefit local food pantries, including Catholic Charities of West Michigan, Christian Community Center, God’s Kitchen, and Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry. All the bowls painted by volunteers will be given to participants at the event.
Herman Miller’s Black Inclusiveness Resource Team—one of seven employee networks that work to implement business recommendations for a diverse workplace—sponsored the bowl painting opportunity in cooperation with our Inclusiveness and Diversity Team.
Our employees displayed great artistic ability in the 98 bowls painted in one day. This was our way of recognizing MLK Day as a “day of action”—doing an activity that benefits the community.
Coretta Scott King sums up the spirit of the event well: “The greatest birthday gift my husband could receive is if people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds celebrated the holiday by performing individual acts of kindness through service to others.”