Early on Martin Luther King Jr., Day, teenagers pulled on gloves and hairnets at the Greater Chicago Food Depository warehouse. Rather than taking the day off, they were there to pack food for neighbors across Chicago and Cook County, carrying out the Food Depository’s mission in a way that reflects Dr. King’s call to serve others.
Youth from Cubs Charities’ Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) and the White Sox Amateur City Elite (ACE) programs, which provide free baseball, softball and mentoring to inner-city youth, along with staff from ComEd, Pepper Construction, and the Obama Foundation filled the warehouse throughout the day. Boxes slid down conveyor belts, cans clinked into place and conversations carried across the room as volunteers honored Dr. King’s legacy through action.
Volunteers work side by side in the Food Depository warehouse, packing food for neighbors across Chicago and Cook County on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Before packing began, Matt DeMateo, CEO of New Life Centers and father of two Cubs Charities’ RBI participants, shared a few words with the young athletes.
“A win or loss doesn’t matter. Did you learn something? And what did you do for others?” he asked, reflecting Dr. King’s words that life’s most persistent and urgent question is what you are doing for others.
Ben (right) and his brother Robert DeMateo were excited to support their community by packing food for neighbors in need.
His son, 17-year old Ben DeMateo, a senior at Farragut High School, leaned over a table as he packed containers of salsa into a box.
“It means a lot to be here supporting the community,” he said.
He knows some of his classmates experience food insecurity, and volunteering that day gave him a way to help. “The program (Cubs Charities’ RBI) does a lot, including helping us serve others in the community,” he added. Ben has been part of RBI for years and credits it with tutoring and workshops that support him both in school and in life. “It’s fun seeing the teams coming together and doing something to support the community.”
Evelyn Rodriguez gets ready to pack Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) boxes for seniors.
A few tables away, Evelyn Rodriguez, 15, a catcher on her Cubs RBI softball team, stacked boxes with care. “It means a lot to be here volunteering, helping people who don’t have as many opportunities as I do,” she said. “My parents work hard for me to have what I have. To be able to help do that for others is cool.” Evelyn also values that RBI gives her the chance to play softball at a high level for free and make friends she now considers family.
During the afternoon shift, White Sox ACE participant Mikey Watson, 16, a shortstop from Homewood Flossmoor High School, diligently worked alongside his teammates.
“It means a lot to me to be here. We get to help out the community and help put smiles on the faces of people in need and do that with our teammates.”
Mikey Watson volunteers alongside his White Sox ACE teammates, helping pack food for neighbors that was delivered in the following days.
For Mikey, Dr. King’s legacy shapes how he shows up on and off the field and in his community. “MLK paved the way for us. Like him, I try to be a leader, try to bring everyone together.” Next year, he plans to play baseball at the University of Illinois Chicago and study finance or business.
A few family members volunteered alongside the teens. Belinda Flores watched her son Angel, 14, pack boxes nearby. “This is a great experience for our son to see what it is to contribute and help others,” she said.
Angel Flores volunteered with his parents on MLK Day, turning a day of service into a shared family moment.
Among the volunteers was Genora Stone from the Obama Foundation, who has supported the foundation since its earliest days and is known by staff as a super-volunteer.
“Today is about community, about giving back,” she said.
This spring, Stone will walk from Selma to Montgomery, retracing the route of the historic march that helped shape the civil rights movement. Being in the warehouse on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was another way to honor his legacy through action.
Volunteers worked steadily all day. In total, they packed more than 38,000 pounds of food into boxes that are part of the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), which provides free monthly food boxes to low-income seniors age 60 and older. The volunteers also packed 7,200 of pounds of salsa and pasta.
Genora Stone (right) packs bags of beans with colleagues from the Obama Foundation.
By the end of the day, the warehouse was quiet, its tables cleared and pallets stacked with boxes ready for delivery. Gloves were peeled off and volunteers headed home tired and proud, knowing the food they packed would reach neighbors across Chicago and Cook County within days.
On a day dedicated to Dr. King, young people, families and community partners showed that service is not just something to remember, but something to practice. Together, they answered the question Dr. King posed so many years ago: What are you doing for others?
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