In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, about 20 South Whidbey residents gathered at the Good Cheer Garden for a day of service Monday morning.

One of Dr. King’s famous quotes reads, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?’ ” Each year, Americans across the country take time on their day off from school or work to serve the betterment of their communities. This year, President Barack Obama also issued an address urging Americans “to observe this day with appropriate civic, community, and service projects in honor of Dr. King.”

Good Cheer has been hosting its day of service in the Good Cheer Garden since 2009.

This year’s event took place from 9 a.m. to noon and was followed by a picnic lunch.

Volunteers helped ready the garden for spring and growing season by turning over cover crops, weeding, helping to make potting soil and starting seeds to plant in the hoop house, cleaning tools, organizing equipment, harvesting compost and preparing the greenhouse and hoop house for early spring plants.

Camille Green, a regular Good Cheer Garden volunteer, said the day was a definite success. Volunteers were able to finish all of the necessary projects with time to spare, which they used to help with some additional “sprucing up.”

“It’s a huge start on the growing season,” Green said.

Freeland resident Antoine La Londe came with his mother to volunteer at the garden. La Londe said he and his mom had volunteered before, but hadn’t done so for some time.

“We haven’t helped in a while and I was playing too many video games,” said La Londe.

Freeland resident Elise Miller and son Ravi Neumeyer, age 10, also came out to help.

“It’s Martin Luther King Day and we wanted to come and provide some service to the community,” said Miller. “We wanted to have some more volunteer service in our lives.”