A group of local activists in Nanuet spent Martin Luther King Jr. Day helping out at a local food bank.

The volunteers assisted the staff at Rockland's People to People food bank, which feeds and clothes more than 50 people per day. The executive director of the food bank says the number of people in need of help during the past year has doubled.

Joan Rosen, of New City, says she was inspired to help by President-elect Barack Obama.

"We're thrilled that Obama is in, and I think it's important to me as a parent to encourage my daughter to always give," she says.

At an event in Washington, D.C., Obama spoke of thousands of volunteer organizations that worked on this holiday in memory of King, a day on which Obama pushed for commitments to public service.

AP wire services were used in this report.