PAYETTE is thrilled to announce our seventh annual Martin Luther King, Jr., Day of Service.
Each year, PAYETTE embarks on a pro bono, collaborative effort to make our design services accessible to local communities. We have already commenced planning for a seventh year of the program with the release of our Request for Proposals and ongoing community engagement. Existing and future Community Partners are key to the success of this program.
Last year, PAYETTE donated approximately 1,000 hours by one-third of our staff toward the Day of Service. Five project teams collaborated with our Community Partners to generate design solutions for a variety of program types such as local main street organizations, health centers, elder service programs and more. Projects ranged from interior renovations to larger site planning, including teams focused on office space redesign and façade upgrades. We urge all interested non-profits to reach out to discuss potential projects and answer any questions regarding the nature of the proposal.
The Day of Service includes a full day charrette (or design workshop) where the PAYETTE team brainstorms and iterates designs with input from each Community Partner. The program culminates with a presentation to our partners with the final deliverables which could include plans, sketches, image collages or other items requested by the partners. We believe deeply in this program and the impact it has – not only on us as designers, but on our communities.
when
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: January 19, 2026
Participation will be in person or remote/hybrid, as determined by project teams and Community Partners.
How
Proposals received by November 14, 2025 will be reviewed and four to six projects will be selected by the Day of Service organizers. Each project will then be assigned a team from the PAYETTE staff. Each team will have a PAYETTE project lead responsible for working with the Community Partners to coordinate scope definition, identify deliverables and follow up after the Day of Service.
Submission forms and details can be found here.
Following the Day of Service, teams will complete and deliver work products to their Community Partners. The project teams and Community Partners will also be asked to participate in a follow-up survey to evaluate the experience and impact of the day.
important dates
2025
September 29: Request for Proposals Issued
November 14: Project Proposals Due
November 26: Notification of Selected Community Partners
First week of December: First Project Meeting
2026
First week of January: Second Project Meeting
January 19: Day of Service
End of January: PAYETTE Volunteers Complete Final Deliverables
Beginning of February: Final Presentations *
* Date will be established with all Community Partners in January.
related links
The 2025 OpenLAB Boston studio work will be exhibited at Virginia Tech Monday, March 2nd through Wednesday, March 4th.
Please join us for the following events on Monday, March 2nd:
11:00am - Lecture with Parke MacDowell
1:00pm Lobby talk with Kevin Sullivan
This year’s studio identifies seven sites along the frayed edges of Boston’s Greenway. The Greenway is a one-mile-long linear park running through the heart of the city, reconnecting downtown Boston with its waterfront. Many of the parcels along its edges remain undeveloped and present mute, blank facades to the public realm. Addressing and repairing these edges through acts of infilling, layering, grafting, framing, and placemaking is the core focus of the studio—SUTURE.