The Vision Project collects donations for shelters, senior centers, and nursing homes across the parish

PORT ALLEN — A local nonprofit turned Martin Luther King Jr. Day into action on January 19th, collecting winter essentials for organizations that serve some of the area's most vulnerable residents.

The Vision Project, founded by longtime West Baton Rouge educator and pastor Johnny L. Johnson Jr., hosted its annual MLK Winter Essentials Drive at the Port Allen City Railroad Depot on South Alexander Avenue. Volunteers collected new socks, blankets, hats, scarves, gloves, and hand warmers from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"We do it every year," Johnson said at the event. "We do it for the homeless shelters, for St. Vincent de Paul, Metanoia — it's a shelter for children that have been sex trafficked through Louisiana, out in Zachary — the Council on Aging here off of Court Street, Port Allen Care Center, and another nursing home in the Addis area."

Johnson was joined by the organization's board of directors, who helped sort and organize donated items for distribution to the partner organizations.

The donated items benefited at least six organizations: St. Vincent de Paul, which provides shelter and services to individuals experiencing homelessness in the Baton Rouge area; Metanoia Manor in Zachary, a residential facility for young female survivors of human trafficking; the West Baton Rouge Council on Aging; the IRIS Domestic Violence Center, which provides emergency shelter and legal advocacy to domestic violence survivors across seven parishes including West Baton Rouge; Port Allen Care Center; and a nursing home in the Addis area.

Johnson brings more than three decades of community service to The Vision Project. With 30 years in the school system and 20 years as a pastor in West Baton Rouge Parish, he has built a reputation as both an educator and community leader.

The Vision Project can be found on Instagram at @thevisionprojectorg.