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Schedule of activities and events for 2022 MLK Jr. Day in Chelsea

Four Chelsea organizations are cooperating to provide a range of activities this year to commemorate and honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on his birthday, a national holiday. It is celebrated on Jan. 17 this year.

The First United Methodist Church will offer a multi-cultural concert on Jan 16. The Chelsea District Library will feature a showing of the film The Butler with a discussion on Jan 17. The Human Rights Commission will have a speaker and presentation that same week. More details on these events will come in January.  One World One Family will again sponsor a collection followed by a Day of Service and Social Action on Jan 17, the MLK Jr. Day holiday. Chelsea Schools have off that day.     

From Jan 3 to Jan 17, please consider donating new school and art supplies for refugee families. Area resettlement agencies have said they never get enough of these.

Drop off locations include Chelsea District Library, First United Methodist Church lobby, the Chelsea Senior Center and the Chamber of Commerce. Financial donations are also welcome. Details are on the wish lists.

[CANCELED] On January 17, the MLK Jr. Day holiday, families and youth are invited to gather from 10am to 3pm at the Chelsea Depot to work on projects to reach out in a personal way to offer welcome to refugee families. Projects include friendship bracelets, hand drawn cards, and even tie-dye socks. (Youth may bring a pair of their own to do too.) The art and school supplies kits will be assembled and all the items delivered to families through Jewish Family Services and Washtenaw Refugee Welcome. Chelsea Depot Association is a co-sponsor of the event. It will be a fun time that will make a difference for new families to the area. Student and adult volunteers will staff the craft tables. To volunteer, please contact owofchelsea@gmail.com. Masks will be required and social distancing in place.

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See full newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/52178873b8ca/owof-october-2025-newsletter-17717631

The OWOF version of "2025 Wrapped" just dropped!!!! Check out our December newsletter in your email or click through here: https://mailchi.mp/52178873b8ca/owof-october-2025-newsletter-17717631 Early in 2025, our Board of Directors chose to focus attention on the important issues of Housing Affordability and Immigration. Throughout the year we hosted a number of educational community discussions, collaborated with local groups like the City of Chelsea Human Rights Commission, MIRA, Jackson 4Immigrants, Grassroots Action, and Equality Chelsea, as well as several different groups to train and distribute Know Your Rights information to businesses in our communities. In addition, there was tabling at the Expo, Farmers Market, and Sounds & Sights. We could not do this work without help from you. OWOF is a purely volunteer non-profit and we rely on donations to help pay for expenses to bring you a monthly newsletter and countless opportunities to learn and grown. If you are interested in Board membership, getting more involved as a volunteer, attending our programs, or making a donation -Thank You! We need you!! There are no membership dues, but we will be planning an all member meeting in January or February where we will be fleshing out of our program year. Our Board meetings are via zoom, held once per month and all are welcome to sit in. Donations can be make online (at owofchelsea.org) or mailed to PO Box 31, Chelsea, MI 48118. Thank you again for all that you do to support social justice issues. We hope you have a Happy Holiday season and we’ll see you in the New Year! - The OWOF Executive Committee (Joanne, Jane, Sandra, and Carolyn)

The Tamale Dinner Fund-Raiser for Jackson County for Immigrants Coalition was a huge success. $1800 was raised through a combination of dinner sales, a 50/50 raffle, and cash/ check donations. Pilar's Tamale's in Ann Arbor kindly provided 189 tamale dinners. Customers could "dine-in" or "take out". A traditional Mexican playlist accompanied dinner. Kitchen volunteers worked tirelessly to get meals plated. A Jackson group member brought along a Mexican vendor cart with authentic Mexican candy to sample for a suggested donation. OWOF Board Member, Christa Williams MD, thanked and welcomed guests, and introduced Gayla Ignacio and Amador Ybarra, two of the representatives from Jackson County for Immigrants Coalition. They spoke about their group and its efforts to support and protect immigrants in Jackson County during the heightened, warrantless, ICE arrests of community members and the effect this is having on community members, local businesses and families. A question and answer-session followed, allowing for further discussion of how their group is responding to the situation, and how concerned Chelsea residents may be able to assist. The generosity and caring community spirit of Chelsea was evident throughout the evening. Many excellent conversations were had. More than one OWOF member heard "I hope you will be doing this again". And at the end of the evening, when volunteers were pitching in to clean up, we drew the winning 50/50 raffle ticket, which had just one word on it: "donate". OWOF definitely looks forward to doing a similar fundraiser in the future.

After the rally on Saturday, come hear from Voters Not Politicians on Sunday.

Great event coming! Pilar’s famous tamales to support Jackson Immigrant Rights activities. They are doing good work with very few resources. Get your orders in now before 10-21.

Voter rights/voter suppression! Important conversation - 5th in our series of Making Sense of the Unprecedented. Sunday 10/19 - 3pm Council Chambers

Sunday, Oct 5. 5pm at First United Methodist Church in Chelsea. Important work!

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