The nation paused Monday to remember the Rev . Martin Luther King Jr. , the civil rights icon who would have turned 83 this year had a bullet not cut short his life . President Barack Obama marked the holiday with a service project at the Browne Education Campus in Washington on Monday morning . He told the group it was the third year that he , his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha have engaged in some sort of service on King 's birthday . While Malia was present Monday , Sasha `` could n't make it today , '' the president said . `` We 're going to be doing a whole bunch of stuff to make the ( school ) facilities even better than they already are , '' Obama said . He said there is `` no better way '' to honor King 's life than by doing something on behalf of others . `` There 's nobody who ca n't serve , nobody who ca n't help somebody else , '' he said . `` Whether you 're 7 , or 6 , or whether you 're 76 , you can find the opportunity to make an enormous amount of difference in your community . '' Later Monday , the first couple will attend the Let Freedom Ring Celebration at the Kennedy Center . In America blog : Full Martin Luther King Jr. Day coverage . U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is scheduled to speak at the King Day at the Dome rally in Columbia , South Carolina on Monday , according to organizers of the event . The event will `` commemorate Dr. King 's life , draw attention to economic and educational equalities in the state , and protest the Confederate battle flag flying in front of the ( state capitol ) building , '' organizers said . A federal holiday to honor King , who was assassinated in April 1968 , was first observed in 1986 . In 1994 , Congress also designated it a national day of service . On Monday , a group including Washington Mayor Vincent Gray , civil rights activist Dick Gregory and the Rev . Al Sharpton placed a wreath at the memorial honoring King . `` We must be reminded as to why Dr. King has been the one to deserve such a monument and such a holiday , '' Sharpton said . `` ... What he did was hold a banner of freedom and equality that actually transformed this nation . '' On Sunday , park rangers also placed wreaths at the memorial . Members of King 's family stood beside the towering 30-foot statue of him as crowds sang `` Happy Birthday '' at a ceremony . `` We 're celebrating the best of what we are , but also what we must become , knowing that we 've not arrived there yet , '' Martin Luther King III said . On the civil rights leader 's birthday -- January 15 , 1968 -- Martin Luther King Jr. was planning a `` poor people 's campaign '' to bring together Americans from all walks of life to demand `` decent jobs with decent pay , '' his son said . `` He did not live to see that come to fruition , and so , 44 years later , we 're still challenging our nation , particularly in light of the fact that there 's so much poverty rampant in this nation , '' Martin Luther King III said . The Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in Washington opened to the public last year . Sunday 's ceremony came several days after officials confirmed that a controversial quote on one side of the monument would be corrected . The line currently reads : `` I was a drum major for justice , peace and righteousness . '' The quote , which holds a prominent place among more than a dozen King 's most notable lines at the site , sparked controversy last summer when poet Maya Angelou said it made the civil rights leader appear arrogant . King 's original words , from a 1968 sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta , were : `` If you want to say that I was a drum major , say that I was a drum major for justice . Say that I was a drum major for peace . I was a drum major for righteousness . And all of the other shallow things will not matter . '' Angelou said that leaving out the `` if '' changes the meaning . Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has given the National Park Service 30 days to consult with the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation , members of the King family and others to decide on a more accurate version of the quote , an official at the Interior Department said last week . King 's son said Sunday that he supported the move , because future generations may not know the context of the quote . `` It could be confusing . For us today , no , but for generations yet unborn , they may not understand , '' he said .
President marks day with service project at a Washington school . The Rev . Eric Holder would have turned April 1968 . Attorney General Martin Luther King Jr. will speak at Dome at the Dome in Washington . King 's son : `` We 're celebrating the best of what we are , but also what we must become ''