ShAARP Session: Observations from AARP

Results tagged “White House” from ShAARP Session

Apr '09 30

David Goldstein | 10:32 AM | 0 Comments

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Yesterday the President completed his 100th day in office. He held a press conference and a town hall meeting yesterday to discuss his progress so far and where he would like to head over the rest of his term. President Obama noted: "I'm pleased with the progress we've made, but I'm not satisfied," Obama told the cheering crowd at Fox Senior High School. "I'm confident in the future, but I'm not content with the present."

So there is work still to be done for sure, but with all of the issues that have already cropped up in the first hundred days, it can be useful to look back on what the Obama administration has done so far. How do you think the President has done in his first hundred days in office?

Feb '09 24

David Goldstein | 10:09 AM | 4 Comments

When you were a kid in school, you probably had a teacher who extolled the value of writing your elected officials to let them know how you feel about important issues. I can remember writing a letter to the President when I was in elementary school. Getting that form letter in the mail was pretty exciting, even if the President never even saw the letter.

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Mailing your thoughts to the President continues to be a popular choice for Americans facing serious issues and the White House gets thousands of letters everyday. What you might not have known is that President Obama reads ten letters from normal Americans each and every day. Moreover, he says that these letters help him see the real problems facing people in this country and have an impact on his policy decisions. The odds might not be good, but knowing there is a shot the President could read your letter is pretty cool.

Feb '09 23

Beth S. Carpenter | 12:05 PM | 6 Comments

After signing the federal stimulus bill into law last week, the White House has convened a Fiscal Responsibility Summit. AARP's CEO Bill Novelli is attending to represent AARP's 40 million members. Here's what he had to say about today's importance:

Jan '09 12

David Goldstein | 10:17 AM | 0 Comments

With a struggling economy, two wars, and a health care crisis to deal with, President Obama and the First Lady will have plenty on their plate when they move into the White House. Thankfully, one thing they'll have plenty of help with is watching their kids.

Michelle Obama's mother Marian Robinson, 71, will be moving into the White House and helping care for the Obama's two daughters. Mrs. Robinson will be just one of 3.6 million parents living with their children, and surveys show that 24% of boomers expect their parents to move in with them at some point.

Knowing they have a caring role model to look after their children has been a huge help to the Obamas during their years of campaigning and the arduous transition to the White House. Despite the new challenges facing Mrs. Robinson, she fully plans on maintaining her very active lifestyle which at one point included participating in the Senior Olympics.

Although the Obamas rave over Mrs. Robinson's caregiving abilities she fully acknowledges spoiling her grandchildren from time to time, something I'm sure they don't mind.

Jul '08 25

Alejandra Owens | 11:26 AM | 1 Comments

There's a great op-ed today in the Chronicle of Philanthropy talking about how foundations can promote volunteering.

"The signs of interest in service are everywhere. A group of scholars and leaders housed at the Brookings Institution has proposed that Congress join with the White House to double the size of the Peace Corps and to establish a program of Global Service Fellowships to support American volunteers interested in working with nonprofit organizations, religious institutions, and universities that are committed to advancing peace and development. In the past few months, California created a new cabinet-level position for service and volunteering, and the U.S. Senate joined the House of Representatives in establishing the National Service Congressional Caucus."

At AARP, we're pretty focused on engaging people in opportunities to make a difference. In fact, nearly half of our 39 million members are out making a difference from their own communities to the halls of Congress. That's why AARP's joining ServiceNation, which is working to make more opportunities available to people who want to get more involved in national or community service.

So, tell us, what do you do to make a difference? And, while everyone's focused on engaging young people, how can AARP be doing more to make sure those of us over 50 have more opportunities too?