[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 31 (Monday, August 5, 2002)]
[Pages 1286-1288]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the USA Freedom Corps Public Service Campaign

July 30, 2002

    The President. Thanks. Thanks for coming to the White House. 
Welcome, and thanks so very much for your good works and your commitment 
to serve others.
    The men and women in this room and the members of my administration 
are working to foster a culture of service, of citizenship, and of 
responsibility for decades to come. You're part of a cultural change 
that will make America a much better place.
    I--today I'm going to announce some new steps that the USA Freedom 
Corps will be taking to make service a more central part of American 
life. I want to thank Gale Norton, a member of my Cabinet, the Secretary 
of the Department of Interior, for being here. I appreciate one of the 
newest television stars, Bob Dole--[laughter]--being here. Thank you, 
Senator. And it's good to see my friend Steve Goldsmith, who's the 
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Corporation of National and 
Community Service; and its CEO, Les Lenkowsky. Thank you all for being 
here as well.
    I appreciate the many foundations and organizations who are 
represented here today that have supported the Corporation for National 
Community Service. The Network for Good, which is a nonprofit 
organization--it has been a strong supporter of our call to service from 
the very start. I want to thank the Walt Disney Company. I appreciate so 
very much the U.S. Department of Justice for sending representatives 
here. I want to thank the UPS Foundation. I want to thank Peggy Conlon, 
who is the president and the

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CEO of the Ad Council. I want to thank the members of the Ad Council who 
have done some pretty good work, as you'll see here in a minute.
    I appreciate very much the USA Freedom Corps Volunteer Network 
members who are here. I want to thank the representatives of television, 
print, and radio as well.
    You know, none of us would ever wish the evil that was done on 
September the 11th; yet out of the tragedy can come great good. I 
believe that from the bottom of my heart. Out of the evil done to 
America will come some good. Challenging times test the character of 
individuals and test the character of our Nation. In the aftermath of 
September the 11th, Americans have responded with courage and 
compassion, with great resolve and determination.
    The last 10 months have offered us a glimpse of what a new culture 
of service can be. And we're not going to let this moment pass. We'll 
sustain and extend the best that has emerged in our country. And there 
are good reasons for every American to serve our Nation. We serve 
because it's important to our neighbors. We understand that serving 
others meets needs that a Government can never fulfill. You see, 
Government can hand out money, but it can't put hope in people's hearts 
or a sense of purpose in people's lives. The need for kindness and for 
understanding and for love is not a Government function. It's a human 
function. And that's why we serve our neighbor.
    We serve because it's important to our own character. Acts of 
compassion add direction and purpose to our lives. Serving something 
greater than yourself in life is part of a fulfilling life. And finally, 
we serve because it's important to our country. Our Nation is the 
greatest force for good in history, and we show our gratitude by doing 
our duty. We express our love for America by loving Americans.
    Six months ago in my State of the Union Address, I issued a call to 
service. I asked every American to commit at least 2 years, 4,000 hours 
over the rest of your life, to service for neighbors and our Nation. To 
encourage service, we established what we call the USA Freedom Corps, 
ably headed by John Bridgeland.
    The USA Freedom Corps is matching potential volunteers with local 
charities. It is encouraging participation in the new Citizen Corps, 
AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Peace Corps. We're promoting service 
to prepare for crises at home, to strengthen our communities, to help 
people in need, and to extend American compassion throughout the world.
    The response to the call to service has been strong, and it can get 
stronger. VolunteerMatch, a group that matches volunteers to charities 
on the USA Freedom Corps Web page, reports that referrals have increased 
by more than 70 percent over last year.
    I want to thank my fellow Americans for answering the call to 
service, because Americans in record numbers are now being directed to 
local service opportunities. Since the State of the Union Address, more 
than 66,000 people have requested applications for the Peace Corps--
66,000. Applications to join AmeriCorps are up by nearly 90 percent. 
More than 45,000 Americans have signed up to participate in the new 
Citizen Corps. And visits to the Senior Corps Web site have increased by 
almost 60 percent.
    Individuals and nonprofit organizations and businesses have stepped 
forward to offer pledges and new commitments and ways in which citizens 
can meet the 2-year call. Businesses are offering employees annual paid 
leave to perform community service. I think it's a movement that's just 
beginning here in the country, and I want to thank those corporate 
leaders who understand that responsibility not only to shareholders is 
important, but responsibility to communities in which they exist is 
equally as important.
    We're looking for ways to make service count positively in getting a 
job. In other words, corporate America views that as an important part 
of a complete employee. Promoting service is really what corporate 
responsibility means.
    The United States Congress is also meeting its responsibilities. 
Congress is providing $25 million this year to support Citizen Corps so 
that Americans can be trained in emergency response and can support 
first-responders. Good progress is being made to renew the promise of 
the Peace Corps and

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double the number of volunteers over the next 5 years.
    I hope Congress will soon pass, so I can sign into law, the 
bipartisan ``Citizen Service Act,'' which incorporates many of the 
principles to strengthen and reform national service programs. It should 
be an interest to Members of Congress that all 50 Governors also have 
urged Congress to strengthen these important programs. Congress needs to 
act for the good of service for the United States.
    Since January, this Nation has made tremendous progress in serving 
others, yet I fully recognize more needs to be done. Today I'm pleased 
to announce a public service advertising campaign, developed with the 
Corporation for National and Community Service and the Ad Council. This 
campaign rests on a single, simple principle: Everyone can do something.
    And today I'm pleased to unleash the TV ads. It's a private showing, 
first of its kind. [Laughter] This is one part of an effort that 
includes radio and print and the Internet. To support Americans who will 
respond to the call to service, we are launching the new USA Freedom 
Corps Volunteer Network, which is the most comprehensive volunteer 
clearinghouse ever. The network connects Americans to service 
opportunities throughout more than 50,000 organizations, including 
America's Promise and the National Mentoring Partnership, the Points of 
Light Foundation, SERVEnet, and the United Way and VolunteerMatch.
    This network is now accessible through the newly redesigned USA 
Freedom Corps Web site, usafreedomcorps.gov. If you want to serve in a 
soup kitchen or mentor a child in your local community, call up the Web 
page, and you can find out where to go. If you want to take a full year 
and serve in the Senior Corps, America Corps, this is where you can find 
opportunity to do so. If you want to help people overseas through the 
Peace Corps or other organizations, usafreedomcorps.gov will tell you 
what's available.
    You know, one of the main reasons people give for not volunteering 
is that no one has asked them to do so. I'm asking. Another reason is 
that they don't know where to start. This public service advertising 
campaign will ask Americans to serve, and through the USA Freedom Corps 
Web site, they have a place to start.
    These ads are important to America. And I urge television networks 
and major affiliates and radio stations and newspapers to run them. By 
broadcasting these PSAs, they promote the common good for our Nation. By 
broadcasting these PSAs, they will help show the world and our fellow 
Americans that out of the evil done to our country can come some 
incredible good.
    It's now my pleasure to play four new public service announcements 
featuring some fine Americans. I'm not sure Mariano Rivera is an 
American citizen, but he's a fine New York Yankee--[laughter]--Angie 
Harmon, John Glenn, and Bob Dole. So now we'll watch the PSAs.

[At this point, the public service announcements were shown.]

    The President. I want to thank you all for coming. I hope you enjoy 
a little reception we're throwing for you at the State Dining Room. But 
in the meantime, thank you for your love for the country. Thank you for 
helping people in need. May God bless your work, and may God continue to 
bless America.
    Thank you very much.

Note: The President spoke at 2:08 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to actress Angie Harmon; and former 
Senators John Glenn and Bob Dole. He also referred to H.R. 4854, the 
proposed ``Citizen Service Act of 2002.''