Ryan McKennedy, second from right, an army veteran and a senior from Springfield studying psychology, plays a pick-up basketball game with Dontay Lawless, 12, second from left, and other club members Monday during Lunch with a Veteran at the Boys and Girls Club in Carbondale. Veterans, volunteers and club members spent time making cards and crafts to pack into two care packages for active military personnel overseas. Club member Malikia Tucker, 10, said the care packages were the most important part of the day. “It shows everyone serving for us overseas that people care for them,” she said. “We have to show our love and support.” Program director Tina Carpenter said she hoped the Martin Luther King Jr. Day event would help the young club members learn more about the people in their community. “They hear about themselves while they’re here, but we want them to be able to think outside of themselves, too,” she said. The SIU National Association of Black Journalists, SIU Center for Service-Learning and Volunteerism and Land of Lincoln AmeriCorps co-sponsored the event and joined the day’s activities. Tiffany Blanchette-Daily Egyptian

Photo taken by Tiffany Blanchette of the Daily Egyptian