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MLK Day of Service 2025

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On Monday, January 20, 2025, we invite you to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy by joining us for the MLK Day of Service. This year, we’re offering seven volunteer locations across the Verde River watershed—each with opportunities for all ages to get involved.

Do you prefer a more flexible option? You can choose your own location, host a cleanup, and share your impact with us.

Here are the options you can choose from

Camp Verde: Clear Creek Fishing Site (all ages, this site requires brief roadside walking and off trail hiking in steep and likely slippery conditions)
Camp Verde: Rockin’ River Ranch State Park (ages 12+ recommended, tasks may be physically challenging and require dragging cut branches; hiking off trail may be needed)
Cottonwood: Dead Horse Ranch State Park (all ages, some tasks may be physically challenging)
Prescott: Watson Woods Riparian Preserve (all ages, some tasks may be physically challenging and require heavy lifting; hiking off trail will be necessary)
Chino Valley: Munds Draw Gully Restoration Prescott National Forest (ages 12+ recommended, tasks may be physically challenging and require heavy lifting; hiking off trail will be necessary)
Fountain Hills: Lower Verde (all ages, hiking off trail may be necessary)
Sedona: Arizona Cypress Trailhead (all ages, hiking off trail will likely be necessary)
Create Your Own Community Clean Up – Wherever You Are! (all ages)

Sign Up to Volunteer

New Digital Volunteer Option

Make a difference from home! Help us share the amazing work being done by volunteers across the watershed. We’ll email you links to photos and videos for you to share and tag news outlets, inspiring others to get involved in future volunteer work and to help us spread our message!

Together, we can care for our watershed, honor a day of service, and inspire other to take action. Thank you for your continued support!

MLK Day of Service Videos

Check out these videos from last year’s MLK Day of Service! Last year, over 150 volunteers joined forces across the Verde River watershed, dedicating more than 500 hours to restoration projects and cleanups. Their efforts resulted in the removal of hundreds of pounds of litter, the planting of over 1,000 native trees and shrubs, and the restoration of critical riparian habitats. We hope to build on this success with even more volunteers getting involved this year.

Friends of the Verde River Executive Director, David Gressly extends heartfelt thanks to over 20 volunteers who planted 300 willow poles along the riverbank, enhancing the Verde Valley’s ecological resilience.

Francisco Anaya, Forest Biologist for the U.S. Forest Service – Prescott National Forest explains why volunteers were planting willow poles at the Clear Creek Fishing Site in Camp Verde, AZ.

Supervisor James Gregory, resident of Yavapai County, District 2, describes his volunteering experience on MLK Day. He joined fellow volunteers volunteers to plant willow poles at the Clear Creek Fishing Site in Camp Verde, AZ. The Prescott National Forest Service employees soaked the willow poles for days beforehand. This helps with root generation.