One Giant Leap Leads to Another

CNCS supports AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and volunteering across the nation [] [National Service News]( iconic photo of Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin was taken by astronaut Neal Armstrong during the Apollo 11 mission to the moon in 1969.]( July 19, 2019 One Giant Leap Leads to Another The 50th anniversary of the moon landing commemorates one of the most significant events of the 20th century. The unforgettable words of astronaut Neil Armstrong -- "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." -- punctuated the end of a project that demonstrated what's possible when a nation unites to achieve a single goal. NASA's astronauts were celebrated around the world for their groundbreaking journey -- and it's a feat that commands awe to this day. And even though the three Apollo 11 astronauts' names are etched in history (and on a plaque on the moon), their achievement would not have been possible without hundreds of thousands of [people working behind the scenes](. Most of us will probably never set foot on the moon, but you never know what influence you may have on people during your lifetime. Somewhere about 238,000 miles from the lunar surface in 1969, there were countless teachers, family members, and others beaming with pride knowing that they played some role in making these men heroes. The [Corporation for National and Community Service]( (CNCS) was formed with our own mission -- to improve lives and strengthen communities through service and volunteering. Our crew of nearly 300,000 [AmeriCorps]( members and [Senior Corps]( volunteers serve at 45,000 locations around the nation, doing great things on a much smaller scale than our next-door neighbors at NASA. For example, through programs that encourage STEM education and increase access to higher education, national service makes a difference in the lives of thousands of students each year. Who knows ... maybe they will influence a young person who will become the next Armstrong, Michael Collins, or Buzz Aldrin. Maybe it's happened already. Godspeed, NASA, as you prepare for new missions to the moon and beyond 50 years after Apollo 11. May your next "giant leap for mankind" be as great as the first. In service, CNCS Office of External Affairs P.S. To learn more about the history of America's space program, visit the [Apollo 50th portal]( on the NASA.gov website. P.P.S. BTW, here's one of our giant leaps five years ago during the AmeriCorps 20th anniversary. [Click here to learn more about AmeriCorps 25th anniversary coming up this fall.]( [AmeriCorps members jump for joy during the AmeriCorps 20th anniversary celebration in 2014.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Editor's note: By clicking the links below, you may be connecting to websites created by parties other than the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). The CNCS Office of External Affairs provides links to these stories because they contain information that may be useful or interesting to the national service and volunteering community. These links are for reference only, and CNCS does not endorse the individuals or organizations associated with these links, and cannot attest to the accuracy of the information provided by websites outside of our control. --------------------------------------------------------------- The Impact of National Service [Kathi Thorn, left, and Donna White volunteer at Immanuel’s House in Martinsburg, W.Va., to help those looking for jobs.]( [Strangers Come Together to Help Others Find Jobs (Senior Corps)]( The Herald-Mail, West Virginia Now, they are a team, but a little more than a year ago, they were strangers. But something special happened when Donna White and Kathi Thorn joined Norm Black in his efforts at Immanuel’s House to help people get jobs. Things have come a long way since then, and the trio, officially known as the Employment Application Team, spends Monday afternoons together trying to make a difference for job seekers. Not that it is an easy or quick process, especially since it often is necessary to build relationships with people who stop by the worship center. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Executive Director of SoulFisher Ministries Shawntelle Fisher teaches a class to incarcerated women at a correctional center in Vandalia, MO.]( [Spirit of St. Louis Women's Fund Gives Away Millions Under the Radar (AmeriCorps)]( The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Missouri There’s a little-known group of local women quietly giving away millions of dollars in the St. Louis area. Their 238 members include both outspoken liberals and hard-core Republicans. They call themselves the Spirit of St. Louis Women’s Fund. Together, they’ve donated more than $2.5 million since 2007 exclusively to small nonprofits in the metro region. At a time when political divides are fraught, many people’s volunteer efforts and charitable giving reflect their ideological values. This makes SOS’s stealth philanthropy to a diverse array of causes even more remarkable. They are part of a "collective giving" trend that has skyrocketed since 2007. The idea is simple. Members recognize that they can make a bigger impact by pooling money and donating larger grants than by giving smaller amounts individually. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [A Homage Senior Services Foster Grandparent plays with children at the senior center in Washington state.]( [Foster Grandparent Program: Intergenerational and Cultural Exchanges (Senior Corps)]( Northwest Asian Weekly, Washington In order to help preserve the culture of intergenerational relationships and increase cultural awareness, the Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) helps build connections between kids and the elderly. According to the Serve Washington website, the FGP began in 1965 and provides loving and experienced tutors and mentors to children and youth with special needs. Adelheid Arbogast, coordinating director of FGP of Homage Senior Services, compared Foster Grandparents to the mentoring program that Big Brothers Big Sisters provides, but instead of meeting at people’s homes, the volunteers meet at schools and day cares. The program is funded by a federal grant through Homage Senior Services, an organization that promotes independence, preserves dignity, and enhances the quality of life for older adults and people with disabilities. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Share It: Connecting Service to Employment [Sterling Turner talks about completing the six-month PeoriaCorps job training and summer employment program offered by the city.]( the message on Facebook]( or like]( Each week, we provide a social media shareable for your networks. This week, we're sharing another story showing how AmeriCorps expands economic opportunity by opening doors to employment. The [PeoriaCorps AmeriCorps program in Illinois was the subject of a feature story in the Journal Star]( that highlighted how seven opportunity youth were able to change the trajectory of their lives through the program. Take a few moments to read the story and click the buttons above to share it with others through your social media networks. --------------------------------------------------------------- National Service in the News [Volunteers unload fans collected through a donation drive led by the Enid RSVP to help low-income residents keep cool during the summer.]( [RSVP Provides Fans to Elderly Amid Summer Heat (Senior Corps)]( Claremore Daily Progress, Oklahoma Enid’s Retired Senior Volunteer Program held a fan donation to seniors in the area Tuesday. The event, a partnership with OG&E with the support of Stride Bank, was planned to help low-income and elderly Enid residents keep cool during summer. “We’re partnering in this endeavor to make sure that our Enid area residents have the ability to have a fan that’s donated by OG&E,” RSVP Executive Director Christy Baker said. The fan donation started in the mid-1990s and has been an annual event in Enid, typically donated to Salvation Army. The box fans usually are donated in mid-June, but they were a little behind schedule due to a glitch this year, OG&E community relations coordinator Jamie Moore said. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Paint Valley ADAMH Board Addressing Ohio's Opioid Epidemic with Statewide VISTA Project (AmeriCorps)]( Pike County News Watchman, Ohio The Paint Valley Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMH) Board is pleased to welcome Brian Cristi as their new AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer. The Paint Valley ADAMH Board was able to seek a VISTA as part of a statewide project to combat the opioid epidemic. Cristi has been selected as the Paint Valley ADAMH Board's Opioid County HUB Coordinator, and he will assist the ADAMH Board in strengthening the county and community efforts to combat the opioid epidemic in Fayette, Highland, Pickaway, Pike, and Ross counties. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Kansas Senior Companion Program Celebrates 45 Years (Senior Corps)]( Great Bend Tribune, Kansas The Senior Companion Program sponsored by Fort Hays State University will celebrate 45 years of service in communities throughout western Kansas with a brunch buffet on Thursday, July 25, at the Rose Garden Banquet Hall in Hays. Senior Companions, dignitaries and guests from throughout the 14-county service area will attend the celebration. The program, established in 1974 at Fort Hays Kansas State College, was one of 18 original projects, and the first in the nation to be sponsored by an institution of higher education [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [AmeriCorps program coordinator for Rebuilding Together Acadiana Tamara Chance speaks during a volunteer muck out training session. ]( [Tropical Storm Barry: Volunteers Get a Course in Mucking Out Homes (AmeriCorps)]( Lafayette Daily Advertiser, Louisiana As Tropical Storm Barry churns toward south Louisiana, volunteers in Vermilion Parish learned how to muck out flooded homes Friday. The Catholic Charities of Acadiana held the training at St. Mary Magdalen Parish Hall in Abbeville. Ben Broussard, the organization’s chief communications officer, said the goal was to make sure volunteers are better equipped and trained than they were for the 2016 flooding. The training session was led by Tamara Chance, an AmeriCorps program coordinator for Rebuilding Together Acadiana. She walked volunteers through some common mistakes people make when mucking out a home and explained the proper process. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [At Pike Place Market, Seniors and Kids Work Well Together and Schools and Day Cares Nationwide are Noticing (Senior Corps)]( The Seattle Times, Washington Several floors below the daily bustle of Seattle's famed public market, an octogenarian and a 5-year-old prepared a meal. In a classroom filled with art projects and books, they shaped dumplings and decorated cookies-all out of orange Play-Doh. Most interactions between the two at the Pike Market Child Care and Preschool happen through gestures and touch, as 83-year-old Zhibin Ding's first language is Mandarin; preschooler Olivia's is English. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Flood Relief Organization Extending Stay in Iowa]( KMTV-TV, Nebraska People who need helping gutting their homes following the flood may be eligible for cleanup assistance. Flood relief organization AmeriCorps says they are extending their stay and continuing to offer free services to help flood victims get back on their feet in Southwest Iowa. AmeriCorps says they will continue operations in Mills and Fremont Counties where they offer services "such as mucking and gutting, mold suppression spraying, and debris removal." [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams Deployed to Mills and Fremont Counties]( KSOM-FM, Iowa AmeriCorps has extended its mission to the Southwestern Iowa Flood Response to serve those who have been impacted by severe flooding. Multiple AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams have deployed to serve in Mills and Fremont counties until August 10, 2019. AmeriCorps members provide free services to flood survivors, such as mucking and gutting (the deconstruction of water and mold damaged materials inside the home), mold suppression spraying, and debris removal. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Commission Set Up to Attract Younger Workers to New Hampshire (AmeriCorps)]( WMUR-TV, New Hampshire A new state commission will look at ways to attract younger people to New Hampshire's workforce. The state's workforce is aging, and Gov. Chris Sununu said the commission will target young people who have already shown a willingness to serve. The commission will be made up of various stakeholders, such as educators, lawmakers and charities. Sununu said it will look for ways to keep young service program workers, such as those participating in AmeriCorps, in New Hampshire after they finish their service. [Read more and watch video]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Dallas, Let's Recapture the Volunteerism Spirit of 1969 (AmeriCorps)]( The Dallas Morning News, Texas As we reflect on the events of 1969, I am asked what I did as a recent college graduate that summer. I reply I was a VISTA volunteer. The questioner usually looks puzzled. "You know," I continue, "Volunteers in Service to America?" The truth is that many have never heard of VISTA. Lost among the images of men walking on the moon and young people sitting in the mud at Woodstock is the spirit of volunteerism that took place that summer. In the midst of widespread unrest and a frayed generational divide came the decision by many to get involved — a decision that maintains its relevance 50 years later. [Read more]( --------------------------------------------------------------- News You Can Use [Applications are now being accepted for the Increasing Diversity in Environmental Careers Program through the Conservation Corps of Minnesota & Iowa.]( [Applications Open for New STEM Career Pathway Program (AmeriCorps)]( If you know an environmentally-minded college student or soon-to-be college student interested in pursuing a degree in science, technology, engineering, or math, there might be a future for them at the Department of Natural Resources. Conservation Corps Minnesota and Iowa, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, and the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources are partnering to provide the Increasing Diversity in Environmental Careers Program. The program consists of three parts – a fellowship with stipends to ensure financial and academic success, a mentorship to connect students with professionals in the field, and an internship to ensure the students have experience in the field before graduation. Click below to apply. [Learn more]( [NationalService.gov]( | [Manage Preferences]( [facebook]( We sent this email to {EMAIL} on behalf of the Corporation for National and Community Service. [Corporation for National and Community Service] [View as a webpage / Share]( --------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to {EMAIL} using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: Corporation for National & Community Service · 250 E. Street SW · Washington, DC 20525 · (202) 606- 5000 · (800) 833-3722 [GovDelivery logo](