SCRANTON — On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Trevon Bess listened to his heart.
The 12-year-old slid into a white lab coat and held a stethoscope as students from Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine taught a lesson on vital signs. The future physicians used Monday’s holiday to volunteer — and hopefully inspire children — in honor of the slain civil rights leader.
“If he didn’t do what he did, this would all just be a place for white people,” Trevon said, motioning to the inside of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Northeastern Pennsylvania. “You’ve got to know your history.”
In partnership with the Greater Scranton Martin Luther King Commission, medical school students and staff spent the afternoon at the Boys and Girls Clubs and at St. Mary’s Center, working with children through Friends of the Poor.
At the medical school, professors canceled afternoon classes and students organized activities to encourage children to think about King and learn about medicine.
“It’s important to get out of the classroom and into the community,” said Saghar Helen Akhondi, program coordinator for the college’s Center of Excellence. “It’s important to give back and pay it forward.”
Elementary school children completed “I have a dream” artwork after learning about King’s famous words. One child wished for love for the world. Another child wished for “more candy for the community.” In the gym, students ran a “knowledge race,” learning facts about King.
Alfred Hamilton, a third-year medical student from Montgomery, Alabama, and president of the school’s medical student council, helped with the race. As he walks to classes at the medical college, he often sees and talks to the same students who go to Boys and Girls Clubs after school.
“This is a way for me to give back to a community allowing me to attend medical school here,” he said.
Savion Wilson, 12, said learning about King is an important lesson for everyone.
“If he wasn’t born or wasn’t here, the world would be a different kind of place,” Savion said.
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