Last night something rare occurred. Four presidents were scheduled to come together and not for an inauguration or a funeral. They joined together for a celebration of the unique spirit of volunteer service. At a time when our public discourse seems to feature nothing but animus, Monday night’s event at the Kennedy Center highlighted the ties that bind. “All Together Now, a Celebration of Service” cast a light on the shared belief in the power of individuals to create change.
The political leaders of the past four decades — men who have battled one another politically — stood together to honor one of their own, President George H. W. Bush, for his legacy of service. It is a legacy that each president has advanced legislatively and through his own unique expressions of personal commitment.
In the past 20 years, we have seen a resurgence of volunteerism. The spark for this modern-day service movement began with Bush, who noted in his 1989 inaugural address that, even in times of scarcity, we have one resource that always grows, “the goodness and courage of the American people.” He called for “a new engagement in the lives of others, a new activism, hands-on and involved ... a thousand points of light.”
In 1990, Bush, a Republican, signed the National and Community Service Act, legislation derived, in part, from a bill that my father, Sam Nunn, a Democrat, introduced in 1989 to expand both domestic and military service opportunities.
The 1990 act established what has become the Points of Light Institute to recognize and to inspire community volunteerism and national service. President Bill Clinton further extended this effort with the creation of AmeriCorps and the Corporation for National and Community Service in 1993. President George W. Bush further sustained this effort and we now have more than 750,000 AmeriCorps members who have served our nation.
In his post-presidency, President Jimmy Carter embraced service and the hammer through his work with Habitat for Humanity and lifted up a movement that has engaged millions of volunteers. As a Nobel Peace Prize winner, he has embodied the power of individuals to create change.
Most recently, President Barack Obama extended this tradition of service by signing the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act in 2009. The bill passed both the House and the Senate by large, bipartisan margins with Georgia’s two senators, Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson, among the supporters. The Serve America Act triples the number of AmeriCorps members over eight years and expands and strengthens volunteerism.
What all these leaders — Democratic and Republican — knew was that, while the three branches of our constitutional system would preserve our democracy, it would be the citizen-volunteer who would hold the key to its domestic and international promise.
And citizens have responded. The number of individuals volunteering annually grew by 25 million during the past 20 years. Young people, in particular, have stepped forward in dramatic numbers to serve. Indeed, community engagement has become a natural pathway for young Americans to weave academic and athletic achievement with outreach in their communities
The state of our political discourse may have weakened, but our long-held, bipartisan heritage of service and volunteerism remains strong. This continued commitment gives us hope for a better world — every person discovering their power to make a difference and to create healthy, engaged communities.
Michelle Nunn is CEO of Points of Light Institute.
About the Author
