Today Governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger addressed the ServiceNation Summit in New York City via video message,
calling the next President and nation's other governors to establish cabinet
secretaries for service and volunteering.
"The next President of
the United States should
appoint a cabinet secretary of service and volunteerism, because its time our
nation recognizes the vital role of nonprofits and their volunteers -and gives
them a voice in Washington,"
said Governor Schwarzenegger. "And we should not stop there. Every Governor across the country should
appoint such a person at the state level, just like we did California."
In his remarks, Governor
Schwarzenegger noted the importance of volunteering and urged every American to
find ways to give back to their communities.
"Government alone cannot
address our nation's challenges without the active engagement of the people,"
said Governor Schwarzenegger. "Our great
nation has blessed us all with freedom, unlimited opportunity and a chance to
reach for the stars and now we must give back to America
as America
has given to us - so that she too can reach for the stars."
Yesterday
at the Summit, New York Governor David Paterson announced the
creation of a new a cabinet-level position dedicated to service, becoming the
second Governor after Schwarzenegger to elevate service and volunteering to his
cabinet.
"I am excited to partner with New York's
Susan Stern on new initiatives to expand service in our respective states," said
California's
Secretary for Service and Volunteering, Karen Baker. "The ServiceNation
campaign shines a direct spotlight on the critical work of volunteers and
nonprofits across the country."
The ServiceNation Summit brought together 500 leaders from
every sector, including corporations, universities, foundations, and politics,
to celebrate the power and potential of service and volunteering. The
ultimate goal of ServiceNation is to shape federal legislation aimed at
increasing national and community service so that by 2020, 100 million
Americans will volunteer time in schools, workplaces, and community
organizations each and every year (up from 61 million today), and one million
Americans annually will commit one year of their lives to national
service. The Summit
will be followed by a Day of Action on September 27, on which more than 2,000
community events are planned that will highlight the need for expanded national
service and launch a 12-month grassroots campaign.
In February 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger took first-in-the-nation action by
creating a state cabinet secretary for service and volunteering in California. This action gave California's volunteers and
nonprofits a voice a the highest level of state government; improved
coordination of vital volunteer activities statewide and support local service
efforts; encouraged more Californians to volunteer or serve; strengthened
California's ability to respond to natural disasters and emergencies; all
without adding any new net costs to the state budget.






