ShAARP Session: Observations from AARP

We are very excited to announce today that GRAMMY® Award-winning Country star Faith Hill appears in a new public service announcement that encourages Americans to volunteer their time to make America a better place.

Faith's ad, featuring AARP Create The Good is one of the iParticipate series you'll see on ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC.

Got 30 seconds? Take a look at Faith's ad and let us know what you think and how you like to make a difference. As she says, "There are so many ways to serve. What will you do?"

If you're looking for ideas and inspiration to make a difference on your own time, in your community, on the things you care about, visit AARP's www.createthegood.org to get started.

Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow, Morgan Freeman and Matthew McConaughey are among the performers featured in the PSAs. iParticipate was recently launched in New York's Times Square with Create The Good volunteers. We were joined by New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and 15 mayors from around the country, numerous celebrities, including Ashton Kutcher, Tyler Perry, Tim Daly (ABC), Christine Baranski (CBS), Randy Jackson (FOX), Michelle Trachtenberg (NBC), among others, and key service groups to launch the initiative. Check out the pictures and video in Create The Good's Facebook group.

According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that oversees service programs, volunteering rose 1.5% in 2008. That's great news for a statistic that, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, has "stayed static" for 40 years. A great story from USA Today is worth checking out - it's all about volunteerism and I Participate, a program of which AARP is a partner.

The story talks about how television networks are raising awareness of the importance of volunteering in unconventional ways, tying good deeds and charity work into the plotlines of popular sitcoms and dramas, hoping to have an impact on the audience without shoving the idea in our faces via PSAs. Pretty subtle, and a good idea!

Another great story...If you haven't checked it out already, the Wall Street Journal has an enlightening series called "Laid Off and Looking" on the current job search in America. The WSJ is following out-of-work M.B.A.s on their quest to find jobs and sharing their trials and tribulations along the way. Each story is a little different, but all of the posts have garnered motivational comments from readers. Check it out.

When a tragedy occurs, people often come together to grieve and support one another. When the Murray family of Chevy Chase, MD lost both a daughter and mother on June 26, due to an accident caused by a tree branch falling on their minivan, the community responded with acts of full-fledged warmth and sustenance.

After consoling, Sara Knoll, friend of the family's, along with others, set up an online "support system" where more than 400 people have enlisted to offer aid to father, Sean Murray and his five daughters.

The response to the site has been so great that it has ensured that the family's home needs will be met through December 23. The website, Lotsa Helping Hands, makes it simple to reach out to locals in need by creating an online community with a calendar and announcements for organizing.

If you want more ideas on how to help in your community, visit Create the Good's site to find "do it yourself" organizer toolkits to jump-start your plans.

Got a great "do it yourself" way to make a difference in your community? Tell us about it here.

Some daring folks trying to change the urban landscape - watch it on AARP TV:

Today, the President will be challenging non-profits to think bigger and expand the ways they can make a difference. At AARP, we're accepting that challenge by connecting our members to Create The Good where they can find and post opportunities to serve. In addition, we're growing our library of free, downloadable "do-it-yourself" toolkits that give you all you need to make an impact with your friends, on your time, in your community.

You can watch the President's challenge live at 2:00pm EST at http://www.whitehouse.gov/live/ where he will also recognize some great 50+ social entrepreneurs. He will meet with Purpose Prize winners who have finished their midlife careers and come back for their encores, recycling their lifetimes of experience into innovative solutions to community problems.

Recent Purpose Prize winner Robert Chambers will speak. Chambers was 57 when he founded Bonnie CLAC to provide low-income car loans to the rural poor. "I was old enough to understand the injustice I saw and experienced enough to do something about it," says Chambers. "Given the size of our baby boomer population, it's time to figure out how to build on all that experience and use it to solve our nation's most pressing social problems."

Other 50+ Purpose Prize winners invited to the White House are: Gary Maxworthy, who distributes millions of pounds of fresh produce to people in need; Sharon Rohrbach, who provides nurse visits for at-risk newborns; Martha Rollins, who eases prisoner re-entry into the community with job training and support; and Gayle Porter and Marilyn Gaston, who empower African-American women to improve their health.

Visit www.AARP.org/CreateTheGood to find and post opportunities in your state.

em>SPECIAL GUEST BLOG FROM MIMI CASTALDI, AARP
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita had a devastating impact on St. Barnard Parish, LA. All 27,000 homes were uninhabitable after the storm. More than three years later, only one-third of the residents have returned home.

One of my friends suggested we get a group together to help and the next thing you know, seven of us from DC are down in Louisiana this week helping rebuild houses with the St. Bernard's Project. You can sign up right on the web and choose your dates. When we got here they had an orientation and we met volunteers from around the country. There was even another AARP member from Philadelphia who was on her FIFTH trip!

It has been an amazing experience. We heard the story of one of the residents who was stranded on a roof top for six days waiting for help. We saw house after house that still had the markers from when crews in after the storm.

Our group spent the day in a house that is midway through reconstruction. The owner currently lives about 35 minutes away, but he's eager to return to his home, his neighborhood and his family. Crews of volunteers before us stripped the house down to the studs, treated it to get rid of mold, and installed drywall. It was our job to tape and spackle (or mud) the drywall to create a smooth surface. None of us had much experience, but we had a leader from AmeriCorps who patiently showed us what to do, and monitored it to make sure we got it right. By days end I had the hang of it, and felt like I was making a difference.

As a special treat, we were lucky enough to be able to visit a family who had just returned to their home. The family was so happy they cooked us jambalaya for dinner. I told them that somehow that didn't seem fair since they've been living in this harsh reality for years, and we just arrived. She said, just tell your friends what you're doing and that we need their help too.

To get started, visit St. Bernard's Project today.

The Kennedy Serve America Act, which will strengthen and expand civic engagement and volunteer opportunities for people of all ages, just passed the House and is heading to President Obama's desk for signature into law.

Thanks so much to all of you who reached out to your Representatives and Senators!

Thought you might enjoy reading more about it in this Newsweek story. Excerpt below:

"Tom Nelson, AARP's chief operating officer, said the bill gives more older Americans the chance to apply their years of experience to helping others.

Nelson said his group is hearing from thousands of people who say, "How do I get involved, how do I help my community?"

"That older volunteer can be the ideal volunteer," he said."

To see how your Member of Congress voted, visit www.aarp.org/governmentwatch or to get updates on how you can make a difference, join Create The Good.

Great news! The House of Reps could send voluntary service legislation to the President as early as this evening. We're hearing they will consider the Senate-passed version of H.R. 1388, The GIVE Act/Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act this afternoon.

How can you help? Contact your Representatives now and urge them to support the bill. It's pretty simple, just tell them to "Please pass the GIVE Act as amended by the Senate."

The House operator -- 202-225-3121 -- can connect you with your Congressperson. Click here if you need to see who your representative is. Stay tuned to www.aarp.org/governmentwatch to see how your legislator voted.

PS. If you've already called, and asked your friends to call, visit www.aarp.org/CreateTheGood to find more ways you can help out in your community.

Special Guest Blog Posting for shAARPsession
By Senator Orrin Hatch

The Serve America Act is truly a bipartisan piece of legislation that enjoys widespread support. I would like to take a few minutes to tell you why it is such a good bill.

First, this bill is 100 percent voluntary. No one in our nation is compelled to give service, and this bill upholds that tradition. What the legislation will do is provide new and expanded opportunities for people who voluntarily decide to participate.

Moreover, given our current economic climate, there is no better time to make this investment in our nation's future. For every dollar invested in national service, there is anywhere from $1.60 to $2.60 returned on that investment, whether it's kids being tutored, vacant lots turned into playgrounds and parks, homes being built or aid in the form of disaster relief.

An important aspect of this legislation is its multiplying effect. If the measure of this legislation was solely to provide national service slots for 250,000 individuals, I don't think we would have that much to be proud of. But these national service participants, who will receive what amounts to a below-poverty-level survival stipend to meet their basic needs, will leverage millions of traditional unpaid volunteers and hundreds of millions of dollars in private investment in the nonprofit sector to tackle some of our toughest challenges.

One of the things I'm most excited about with this bill is that it provides opportunities for people to serve throughout their live, whether they are young adults or senior citizens. The bill includes programs like the Encore Fellowship program that are specifically directed at our seniors and Baby Boomers. I think this bill will put the skills and experience of our older generations to good use and, at this difficult time, this is a resource we should be all be willing to tap.

Ultimately, the success of the programs shall not be measured by the number of people who participate, but by the work they accomplish.

SPECIAL GUEST BLOG FOR SHAARPSESSION
BY SENATOR BARBARA A. MIKULSKI:

"There is a new, invigorated spirit of service in the United States of America. Americans everywhere are looking to serve and give back to their country. They want to know how they can give and how they can help. They want to be part of an effort to improve society.

"Last month, more than 9,700 applications were submitted to AmeriCorps, more than triple the amount of applications submitted at the same time last year. Last year, 35,000 college seniors applied for 4,000 Teach for America positions.

"This week we brought legislation to the floor of the United States Senate which will allow millions more Americans to answer the call of service. The Serve America Act is the most sweeping overhaul and expansion of national service programs in 16 years. It is not a Democratic bill, it is an American bill.

"The Serve America Act updates and strengthens national service programs administrated by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency I helped create in 1993. It increases the number of AmeriCorps volunteers from 75,000 to 250,000 a year. And it creates new programs to address specific areas of national need. Volunteers will be actively engaged in mentoring and tutoring kids, weatherizing low-income homes, promoting health and wellness, and increasing access to health care. The bill will also engage boomers and older Americans in Encore Fellowships to allow this generation to put their skills and experience to work at home and overseas.

"Many years ago I, too, answered the call to serve. After graduate school, I went down to the VISTA training center in Baltimore to teach volunteers how to be effective in the communities they serve. Seeing that group of determined people making a difference through gumption and hard work really made an impact on me. It was a wonderful experience. One that has colored everything I've done since. And, in giving back, I discovered I got more than I ever gave. This bill is an investment that will engage Americans of all generations and pay dividends long beyond anything we can imagine. It represents the best of America's ideals--spirited volunteerism and the willingness to lend a helping to those in need."

AARP COO Thomas Nelson penned a "Where We Stand" column for Bulletin Today and we wanted to excerpt a bit for you since the Senate's debating the Serve America Act today and expected to vote this week.

"Even as Congress is focusing on financial practices that have badly hurt our economy, the House and Senate are acting on legislation that speaks to what is best about America: a bill to substantially expand opportunities for community and volunteer service...

We've heard a great deal lately about toxic assets. By approving this legislation, Congress and the President can mobilize a very different kind of asset, one found in abundance in every community: the American spirit of service and generosity.

We know from talking to our members and from our survey research that boomers and older Americans stand ready to do more...

AARP urges the Senate to "create the good" by passing national service legislation this week. "

Call your Senators and ask them to support the Serve America Act today. And to find ideas, opportunities and a community of others who want to do more to make a difference, visit www.AARP.org/CreateTheGood.

AARP.org has a touching story about a Catalino Tapia, recipient of the $100,000 Purpose Prize, honored for launching a foundation of gardeners like himself that provides school scholarships for low-income Latino students:

Tending the homes of the San Francisco area well-to-do fills Catalino Tapia, 64, with pride. But nothing has made this Mexican immigrant prouder than the day his youngest son, Noel, graduated from the University of California, Berkeley law school in 1999. "I still cry whenever I talk about it," says Tapia, a gardener in Redwood City, California. "I was just pinching myself to be sure it was for real."

But something even bigger happened that day. Tapia, who emigrated 40 years ago with just a sixth-grade education, started thinking of ways to give other Latino students the same opportunity his son had. Now he has another reason to be proud: Tapia received the 2008 $100,000 Purpose Prize in honor of his work launching the Bay Area Gardener's Foundation, which gives scholarships to disadvantaged Latino students.

Read more about Tapia's journey here.