To hundreds of students, staff and alumni from local colleges, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is about giving back.

On Monday, volunteers from the University of Michigan-Dearborn and Henry Ford Community College joined with City Year Detroit, United Way for Southeastern Michigan, Downriver CARES AmeriCorps, Wayne State University, Madonna University, Davenport University, Marygrove College and Oakland Community College for the 19th annual MLK Day of Service.

Volunteers gathered at UM-Dearborn and WSU before being sent off to various project sites around metro Detroit, where they beautified, organized, cleaned and created. All the while, reassured UM-Dearborn Chancellor Daniel Little, they had MLK's legacy in their hearts and minds.

"I think of (Dr. King) not only as a great activist but as a great thinker," he told volunteers. "And the things that he thought about were ... equality, social justice and compassion. The work that you're doing today, giving of your own time, your own energy, your own hearts to serve our communities, you are serving all three of those ideas.

"You are honoring Dr. Martin Luther King and you are building a better community."