For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 12, 2002
President Promotes Public Service through Freedom Corps
Remarks by the President in Conversation on Service
Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Policy in Focus: Public Service Read the Freedom Corps book
10:14 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very much. Well,
Chris, thank you very much. And thank you all for
coming. I've really been looking forward to coming back to
Philadelphia. After all, it was here that Benjamin Franklin
set the stage for what it means to be a good volunteer. He
started a university and started a library. He rallied
people to help neighbors in need. So it's a good place to
come and conduct a national dialogue on the importance of people
serving neighbors in need, and the importance of people volunteering in
their community.
And I want to thank Chris so very much for agreeing to be a
moderator, but also thank you for your service to the Philadelphia
community. (Applause.)
Sometimes when the President shows up, we get a pretty august crowd
of elected officials here. I know the Mayor is here
somewhere. I want to thank the Mayor for
coming. Mr. Mayor, thank you for being here.
(Applause.) Oh, yes. Senator Specter, Senator
Santorum, Congressman Borski and Greenwood, Congressman Weldon and
Hoeffel -- thank you all for coming. I
know the Attorney General for the state of Pennsylvania is here, as
well. Welcome, Mike. (Applause.)
It's good to see members of the mighty Pennsylvania congressional
delegation -- a fine
lot. (Laughter.) I know they understand the
proper role of government. And that is that government can't
make people love one another. I wish it could. I
promise you, I'd sign the law -- (laughter)
-- and they would all sponsor it. But we
understand that Pennsylvania, like the other states in our Union, are
full of compassionate people. And the job of government is
to serve as a catalyst to capture that compassion.
And that's incredibly important as we fight this war on
terror. You know, we've got a great military might in the
United States, and I can't tell you how proud I am of or
military. (Applause.) But another strength of the
country is our compassion and our love for each
other. (Applause.)
You know, I want to thank the Big Brothers and Big Sisters who are
represented here. I want to thank the Points of Light
Foundation, the Network for Good. I want to thank Gloria
Guard, who recently -- recently, I mean, just like a couple
of minutes ago -- (laughter) -- led me
on the tour of her beautiful place, where homeless women and their
children are loved and cared for and given training to
succeed. What a successful program that's
been. You know, if we'd have had hearings on that in
Washington about how to make that program successful, they'd still be
meeting -- (laughter) -- and
will be meeting, and would have been meeting for a decade.
But there are social entrepreneurs in our society who help define
America. And one of my jobs is to herald those social
entrepreneurs and to thank them on behalf of all
Americans. I believe out of this evil will come incredible
good. And one of the good things that will happen is
Americans will ask the question about how I can help fight evil by
doing something good. That's how I think we ought to do
it. I think we ought to say that if you're interested in
fighting evil, love a neighbor. If you're interested in
doing something for your country, help somebody in need; write a check,
give your time, volunteer.
Societies change one heart, one soul, one conscience at a
time. And government can hand out money, but it cannot put
hope in people's hearts. And we're here to talk about how to put hope
in people's hearts, because people love one another.
One of the things I've asked the country to do is to think about
4,000 hours of public service for the rest of your life, or two
years. That's not hard for some, I understand
that. I bet you've already done that.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: I think so.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, you've got another 4,000 to
go. (Laughter.) People that
responded -- I mean, the response has been
fantastic ever since my State of the Union, when I said, serve the
country. Let me just give you an example: 18,000
people have asked how to -- if they can join the
Peace Corps. And we're going to talk about the Peace Corps
in a minute. AmeriCorps is up by 50
percent. (Applause.) The Citizen Corps numbers
are up; the Senior Corps number is up by 500 percent. In
other words, Americans have been asked to respond, and they
are. And for that, we're a grateful nation.
Let me just talk about the USA Freedom Corps right
quick. It is a chance for people to
participate. It's an opportunity for people to join the
AmeriCorps, which is a way to help strengthen community; Senior Corps,
which is a way to help strengthen community; and-or join in the fight
against terror by being in a neighborhood watch program, for
example. The Citizens Corps, as well, are to help reenforce
the first responders in local communities. And of course,
the Peace Corps is an opportunity to spread American values throughout
the world. And if people are interested in joining the USA
Freedom Corps, you can do so by calling 1-877-USA-Corps
-- or USAfreedomcorps.gov on the Internet.
But serving America doesn't have to go through USA Freedom Corps,
it's just an opportunity. You can serve America all kinds of
ways. You can do so through a faith-based
initiative. And one of the things we must do is get our
faith-based initiative passed out of the United States
Senate. It already has passed the
House. (Applause.) You can do so through United
Way agencies. And by the way, they're not mutually
exclusive. And if you do, one of the things that I have
asked our White House staff to put together is a booklet that would
give you an opportunity to record your service.
And if you're interested in picking up one of these, just dial up
the web site. If you're interested in recording, not only
for yourself, but recording for your family or a child, perhaps, what
you've done to make America a better place, this is a good
go-by. This is a good opportunity to bring a little
discipline into your volunteer service.
When I looked at this, I envisioned kind of an interesting diary
that can be passed from one generation to the next. I can't
think of anything more interesting than a mom or a dad volunteering,
recording his or her thoughts, giving it to a child who gives it to a
grandchild. So somebody is sitting there ready about what it
was like to live in the 21st century, and how to help a neighborhood in
need, for example, or how to help a person in need.
I also want you to know that you can do the same thing through an
on-line tracking system on the USA Freedom Corps web
page. And, as well, I'm going to instruct the
agencies -- Cabinets, my
government -- to figure out ways to reduce
barriers for people to be able to get involved better in their
communities. I mean, sometimes we've got a process-oriented
world. We ought to be a results-oriented
world. We ought to care
less -- (applause) -- we
ought to care less about rules and regulations, and more about how
we're helping people help themselves.
And so I'm looking forward to my Cabinet officers reporting back,
and when we find barriers, we'll do everything we can to prevent them
from inhibiting the love that exits in the neighborhoods around our
country.
I believe that in order to live in a free society, you need to give
something back. In order to make a society vibrant, all of
us owe something to America. And one way to provide that is
either through the military, or through loving somebody and showing it
through actual deeds. And I know that when you do so, I know that when
you help a neighbor in need, it is a part of a complete
life. It's a part of making sure that your life is not
empty. It's a part of making sure that you are able to
really understand the joys of a giving existence.
And so thank you for coming by. Thank you for listening
to an optimistic President. I am so optimistic about our
future. Not only do I believe that we're going to have
lasting peace when we achieve our objectives in the war against terror,
but I know that afterwards, and during this period of trauma for many
Americans, this country's strength, its goodness and compassion will
serve as a beacon for the rest of the world to see.
God bless you. (Applause.)
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: You know, AmeriCorps has got 50,000
AmeriCorps-ians. (Laughter.) And we hope to have
75,000 -- at least the budget calls for an
increase of 50 percent in AmeriCorps
corps. (Applause.) Thank you for your example.
Q Sure. I think that we need to
get the word out to more youth.
THE PRESIDENT: You bet.
Q I think that youth is a real strength in
our community.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, one way to do so is for people to
see what joy you get in serving your community, and how it's a part of
a full life. I think people are becoming a little less
materialistic in America now. One of the
things -- the enemies thought we were totally
materialistic, obviously. They made a terrible
miscalculation about the will and might of the United States and our
drive. But I think people are beginning to realize that
there's more to life than just materialism. You're a living
example. (Applause.)
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: Well, thanks, Ira. Let me ask
you -- (Applause.) What's the
attitude? Give us a read. How is
the -- at Pennsylvania, are the kids involved,
interested, asking for ways to help? Kind of
complacent? Give us a feel.
MR. HARKAVY: Not complacent at all. In fact,
young people come to Penn desiring to serve. And when they
come to the university, they want to put their ideals into
practice. So I think this is an extraordinary
generation. We have to only give them the opportunity and
they will seize that opportunity in ways we could only dream
of. So this generation, both pre-college and in college, is
a generation of extraordinary talent, idealism and
ability. And they want to serve. And I'm
convinced they'll respond to your call. (Applause.)
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: I told Stephanie earlier that reading is
the new civil right. And so far you've heard three speakers
talk about reading. And we've got to get it
right. We've got to get this right. We've got a
pretty good piece of legislation -- a really good
piece of legislation, education legislation, a core component of which
is to make sure that children learn how to read, using as Ira
mentioned, a science of reading and what works.
And so thank you very much for focusing on that. You're
what I call a soldier in the armies of compassion. And it's
pretty extraordinary that a social entrepreneur be so
young. But I want to thank you for that very much.
I bet one of the things you've learned is that by serving as an
example, you stimulate others to serve, as well.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: I appreciate you,
Captain. Thank you very much. (Applause.) I'm
glad the Captain is here, as a citizen soldier, because it serves as a
reminder that we've got people who make the ultimate sacrifice, people
who wear the uniform. We really are fighting for freedom,
and fighting for lasting peace. That's the key for
particularly young Americans to understand, that this nation didn't ask
for war, but that we'd be strong when it comes to the defense of values
that we hold dear. And one of them is freedom of religion,
or freedom to vote, or freedom to express your
opinion. We're fighting evil people who cannot stand
freedom.
And sacrifice is beginning to become apparent to many who never
thought they would have to sacrifice. There is a new culture
evolving in the country -- to the benefit, I
might add, of future generations. And that is that there's
something greater than yourself in life, and it's worth
serving. Part of service is in the military, part of service
is on the streets, part of service is loving people.
And so I want to thank you for coming, Captain, and thank you for
your service. (Applause.)
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I appreciate you,
Elaine. (Applause.) Elaine's got an extraordinary
spirit. She's like the Energizer Bunny, when it comes to
helping people. (Laughter.) Perpetual motion.
And first of all, let me mention something about the Peace
Corps. If there are any people that are interested in
spreading U.S. values around the world, the Peace Corps is a wonderful
place to do so. You may share
that -- some of that with us, if you don't mind,
just a little bit of your experience. Someone may be
watching that wonders if the Peace Corps is worthwhile.
MS. LANDER: The Peace Corps is worth every minute of
it. I first decided I wanted to become a Peace Corps
volunteer in third grade, when the motto was, Helping People Help
Themselves. And when I graduated from college, I was
fortunate, I got accepted to the Peace Corps quickly. And it
was the most amazing two years of my life.
And I tell people that all the time, you're making a call for 4,000
hours of volunteer or two years. That's just a fraction of
one's life span, and it's worth every minute.
THE PRESIDENT: Our goal is to double the Peace Corps
over five years. Our goal is, as well, to make sure we have the Peace
Corps go to nations, particularly Muslim nations, that don't understand
America. They don't understand our heart; they don't
understand our compassion; they don't understand that we share the same
values.
I mean, listen, mom and dad love children in the Muslim world just
like we do in America, and they've got to understand that; that there
are some common beliefs that we share that will
make -- and the Peace Corps is a good way to
spread that message.
MS. LANDER: Yes, I think some of us would
like to say, for a lot of people, the world is a terribly big place,
but for those of us that have served in the Peace Corps, it's a large
planet made up of communities.
THE PRESIDENT: That's right. The other thing
is, is that Elaine is involved in kind of a first responders program
here in Philadelphia. We want people to become involved in
the first responders initiative. We have a Citizen Corps set
up just for that, that really will help communities deal with disaster
if disaster were ever to come. And we're doing everything,
by the way, to prevent disaster from ever happening
again. But should they hit us again, we need to have a
response plan. And Elaine is very much involved in that, as
part of her duties with the Red Cross.
And I want to thank you for that, as
well. Thanks. Thanks for your love, and your
service. (Applause.)
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: First of all, you need to know that here
in Southeast Pennsylvania, because of the United Way, there's what's
called a Volunteer Center. Chris, I want to thank you for
running that. It's a place to help people find a way to
volunteer. If you're interested, USA Freedom Corps doesn't
suit your needs, the United Way Volunteer Center is also a good
opportunity. They help train, they show you the way, they
give you opportunities to -- they show you where
the needs are. And I want to thank you for that.
As well, we've got people from the Corporation for National
Community Service. Steve Goldsmith, who's a former Mayor of
Indianapolis, is with us, as well as Les Lenkowsky. Thank
you all for coming. I appreciate you being
here. (Applause.)
I hope what America gets to see as a result of this dialogue is the
fact that there are people in our country who understand that a culture
of responsibility requires responsible behavior. It requires
people not only to take care of their own by loving your children, but
also requires people to love a neighbor like they'd like to be loved
themselves.
We have living examples of people on the leading edge of ushering
in a culture of personal responsibility. I want to thank you
all for sharing your message with us. It
is -- Philadelphia is better off as a result of
your daily concern for your fellow human beings. America is
strong. We won't relent. We won't relent in the
face of evil. And we will win. We will
win. We'll win hearts and souls and minds.
This country has got a fabulous future ahead of it, because the
strength of the country is not in the halls of our government, but in
the hearts and souls of our citizens.
Thank you for coming.
END 10:46 A.M. EST
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