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JUNEAU - The Southeast Alaska Guidance Association's charity drive will end Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and will be followed by a casual reception at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Glacier View Room of the University of Alaska Southeast to celebrate diversity and thank everyone involved in the effort.

"The community needs drive has been more successful than we had ever imagined," said organizer Margaret Novak, an AmeriCorps member working through SAGA.

The charity drive began after Christmas and is one of hundreds of service projects organized around the nation to honor the slain civil rights leader and make his holiday a "day on, not a day off."

The donations will be pooled and sorted Monday for distribution to local nonprofits, including the Young Parents Center, Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, Helping Hands and LOVE Inc. Items sought include blankets, canned foods and various items for babies. Complete lists are available at drop sites at grocery stores, local schools and other locations.