'Take Action': Nelson Mandela Day Celebrated Worldwide

On what would have been Nelson Mandela's 97th birthday, people around the world Saturday are honoring the legendary South African leader's legacy with charitable acts.

Mandela's ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, held a lunch for elderly and poorer women at the Mandela family restaurant near the family's home in Soweto and handed out blankets, according to The Associated Press. At the University of Johannesburg, his widow, Graca Machel, gave out food parcels.

Others are honoring Mandela on social media using the hashtag #MandelaDay and #Time2Serve.

Nelson Mandela International Day, or Mandela Day, was adopted by the United Nations in 2009, and asks those who want to follow in his footsteps to "Take Action. Inspire Change." 

He died in 2013 at the age of 95.

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