National Service Chief Calls for
"Unprecedented Commitment"
by
Volunteers in Homeland Security Effort
Lenkowsky Sees Special Leadership Role for AmeriCorps and Senior Corps
(Washington, D.C.)— In a speech today at the National Press Club, national
service chief Leslie Lenkowsky
said that preparing the nation for potential terror
attacks will require an "unprecedented commitment" by volunteers in every
community. But he also noted that making that effective use of those volunteers will
require "careful and creative thought about the ways" the nation makes
effective and appropriate use of homeland security volunteers.
Lenkowsky, the CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, said the
administration has taken those challenges to heart in developing the
Citizen Service
Act, which reauthorizes and reforms the programs of the Corporation for National and
Community Service. He urged Congress to pass the legislation soon.
Appearing two weeks before the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Lenkowsky
told Press Club members and a national audience of C-SPAN viewers and
NPR listeners
that protecting the homeland "will take a concerted effort that involves not just
our intelligence and security agencies, and our trained 'first responders,' but also
an unprecedented level of commitment by everyday people to support those first
responders and ensure that homes and families, schools and places of business,
houses of worship and other public spaces are prepared to face any crisis."
Speaking of AmeriCorps and
Senior Corps, two programs of the Corporation for National
and Community Service that actually assisted law enforcement and rescue workers after
September 11, he remarked, "These programs were not designed specifically to
deal with terror attacks, of course, but our members were well trained and fully able
to take on the task. And like other Americans, they were glad to have the opportunity."
To more fully engage Americans in service, Lenkowsky also unveiled a new PSA campaign,
"Americans Give Backs," which features real
Senior Corps volunteers and
AmeriCorps members who currently are serving their country through national service
programs. In the bilingual PSAs, which have been distributed to more than 7,000
television and radio outlets across the country, the participants challenge their
fellow citizens to get involved and to find out more about the Corporation's
programs by visiting www.nationalservice.org
or calling 800-424-8867.
"The response to the Call to Service has been strong, but it can and must get
stronger," Lenkowsky said. "For Americans who have been asking what they
can do in the war on terror, the answer is: Get involved in your community."
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Created in 1993, the Corporation for National and Community Service engages more than 2 million Americans annually in improving their communities through three programs: AmeriCorps, Senior Corps and Learn and Serve America. For more information, visit www.nationalservice.org/about.
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