Fundraising for the Oscar Cross Boys and Girls Club took center stage Saturday night with donations coming in to support youth activity programs.

The annual Sing-A-Thon serves as the club’s single largest fundraiser, bringing together dance and musical acts at Paducah Tilghman High School for six hours. Pledges phoned in or made by guests tallied $2,895 in the first three hours. Last year the club raised $15,835.

Bernice Belt, of Paducah, was one of the 35 acts performing Saturday. The West Kentucky Community & Technical College adjunct professor and Paducah Human Rights Commission director belted out songs in support of the club.

“It’s a personal tradition for me to support and participate with whatever is going on with the Oscar Cross Boys and Girls Club,” Belt said. “It’s an awesome opportunity, and it is a privilege to do anything that’s going to go down in the annals of history on how you have stepped out on your faith and helped children. No one person in the community can do it, but collaboratively, we can get a whole lot done for a whole lot of folks.”

Belt said only good things can come out of supporting club members. She encouraged adults in the community to volunteer and to keep annual pledges that fund after-school recreational and learning activities. Belt also asked shoppers to pick up an extra bag of groceries throughout the year to drop off for the club at 1125 Oscar Cross Ave.

The event was broadcast on a Comcast Cable local access channel. Allen Treece, club director, said support had been strong.

“The funds go directly to our program expenses and opportunities for our kids,” Treece said. “We do a lot of homework help in the afternoon. We also do a lot of recreation and art programs. We try to take them on trips and provide opportunities to things they wouldn’t normally have access to.”

Treece said the club averages about 120 youth daily.

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The 22nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration at Lourdes hospital attracted more than 75 people on Friday afternoon, to carry on an idea that has been front-and-center for 50 years.

“We do it to really carry on the idea of his dream,” said Martha Argotte-Thomas, chairwoman of Lourdes’ Diversity Council. “That dream, of justice and equality, is something we are all still striving for today.”

Friday’s keynote speaker was Rev. Dr. Gwendolyn Duncan, who spoke on living with King’s dream in mind every day. Duncan has been a nurse for 25 years and currently works with Lourdes Homecare.

The celebration included a visit from Lourdes President and CEO Steven Grinnell, as well as prayers and songs, a Scripture reading, and Duncan’s speech.

Lourdes’ Diversity Council, which put on the event, started in 2005. The group brings in other speakers throughout the year and also puts on a Cinco de Mayo celebration in May.

“We try to promote unity in the community both in and outside of Lourdes,” Argotte-Thomas said. “This is probably the largest event we have.”

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Collaboration between McCracken County students and local engineering leaders could expand as part of an outreach effort.

Lone Oak High School students on Friday showcased studies for a group of community members and University of Kentucky College of Engineering faculty. The high school program is a mix of principles and application, from learning the basics of design to building and programming robots.

Brian Dill teaches the courses from curriculum developed by Project Lead the Way. Dill said many of the concepts he teaches mirror what students learn during freshman and sophomore years of college.

“We’re interested in developing a relationship with the UK College of Engineering,” Dill said. “We thought this would be a good time for us to show what our high school students are doing and what they will be doing next year.”

The engineering program will expand to include students from Reidland and Heath high schools next year following the planned consolidation. Dill hopes to open those expanded classes to include mentoring from college engineering students.

Dill said the relationship could help better prepare students entering college.

Dill’s students began working Jan. 5 on an international robot building competition entry.

The six-week competition will culminate Feb. 19 in St. Louis.

David Silverstein, director of the extended campus program, attended the meeting with professor Bill Murphy.

Silverstein said the college works with districts to promote outreach efforts and more possibilities remained with McCracken County schools.

Silverstein said he was impressed with what he saw at Lone Oak.

“It’s using the best ways of teaching students, which is actually doing it,” Silverstein said. “It will unavoidably inspire students to look at careers they might not have.”