[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 3 (Monday, January 22, 2007)]
[Page 42]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Martin Luther King, Jr., Holiday Volunteer Event

January 15, 2007

    This has been my honor to be here. One of the things that Mrs. King 
wanted was for MLK Day to be a day of service. It is not a day off, but 
it's a day on. And so I'm here at Cardozo High School to thank the 
hundreds of people who have showed up to serve the country by 
volunteering.
    And right here in the library, we're with a group of folks who are 
sending postcards to folks who have been affected by Katrina, cards of 
hope, an opportunity for a citizen here to say to somebody in the New 
Orleans area, ``We care about you; people are thinking about you''--and 
all in the hopes of lifting somebody's spirit.
    And so I not only want to thank the folks involved in this project, 
and thank the Attorney General for volunteering, but I encourage people 
all around the country to seize any opportunity they can to help 
somebody in need. And by helping somebody in need, you're honoring the 
legacy of Martin Luther King. And by helping somebody in need, you're 
really helping yourself because you're lifting your soul.
    And so I want to thank the principal of this fine high school; I 
want to thank the organizers of the event; and I want to thank the 
volunteers, young and old, for setting aside time to make somebody 
else's life better.
    Thank you all for coming.

Note: The President spoke at 10:52 a.m. at Cardozo High School. In his 
remarks, he referred to Reginald Ballard, principal, Cardozo High 
School.