Bipartisan Group of National Service Champions to be Honored

For Immediate Release
February 6, 2017

Contact:    
Ranit Schmelzer
202.538.1065
ranit@schmelzerstrategies.com

Bipartisan Group of National Service Champions to be Honored

Senators Roy Blunt, John Cornyn and Tammy Duckworth, Representatives Tom Cole and David Price, Spokane Mayor David Condon, and journalist David Brooks among honorees

Washington, DC – Voices for National Service will honor 18 distinguished leaders in government, business and journalism at the 14th Annual Friends of National Service Awards on February 14, 2017 at Union Station in Washington, DC.

The honorees were selected based on recognition and support for national service as a solution to some of the nation’s most pressing challenges. Each award winner has helped to raise public awareness of national service and elevate service as a national priority.

“These honorees are extraordinary leaders from across the country who understand the unique value of national service as an efficient strategy for engaging citizens, preparing young adults for work, solving problems, and strengthening and uniting our nation,” said AnnMaura Connolly, President, Voices for National Service. “Their commitment to national service, and their leadership in advancing it, directly benefits communities large and small. We’re tremendously grateful for their continued efforts to help expand service opportunities in America.”

The 2017 awards and honorees include:

  • Distinguished Service Award, for exemplary efforts to expand high-quality opportunities for citizens to serve their community and our country: Senator Roy Blunt (MO) and Representative Tom Cole (OK)
  • Outstanding National Service Advocacy Award, for outstanding leadership and advocacy of national service as a state and federal priority: Senator Tammy Duckworth (IL) and Representative John Larson (CT)
  • Congressional Service Award, for remarkable commitment to national service as a strategy to solve local and national issues: Senator John Cornyn (TX)
  • State Leadership Award, for leadership and innovation in leveraging national service to meet state needs: Governor Doug Ducey (AZ) and Governor Steve Bullock (MT)
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt Service and Conservation Corps Leadership Award, for championing the important role of service and conservation corps in modern day America, reflective of the legendary ideals and work accomplished by Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Depression Era Civilian Conservation Corps: Representative Seth Moulton (MA) and Representative Martha McSally (AZ)
  • Edward M. Kennedy National Service Lifetime Leadership Award, for life-long dedication to citizen service and for outstanding leadership in advancing national service as a civic commitment and legislative priority: Representative David Price (NC)
  • Outstanding New Member Award, for elevating national service as a first term legislative priority: Senator Bill Cassidy (LA) and Representative Will Hurd (TX)
  • Local Leadership Award, for leadership and innovation in leveraging national service to meet local needs: Mayor David Condon (Spokane, WA)
  • Service in Media Award, for using journalism to raise awareness of and encourage participation in national service: David Brooks, The New York Times and Judy Woodruff, PBS NewsHour
  • Corporate Service Award, for investing in the civic health of our nation through support of national service: Bank of America
  • Citizen Service Award, for investing in the civic health of our nation through support of national service: Kathy McKim, Vice President for External Affairs for AT&T California, AT&T, Inc., and Stacy Schusterman, Co-Chair of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation

In communities across the country, national service members of all ages and backgrounds provide critical services to fulfill unmet needs. National service members tutor and mentor struggling students, help Americans lead healthier lives, provide job training and other services to returning veterans, preserve the nation’s parks and public lands, offer disaster relief and recovery assistance after natural disasters and support independent living for seniors and Americans with disabilities. For every federal dollar invested in national service, there are returns to society of nearly four dollars in terms of higher earnings, increased output and other community-wide benefits.

Congress created the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that oversees national service programs such as AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, to be a public-private partnership that invests limited federal dollars to leverage substantial private investment to improve lives and communities. In 2015, CNCS generated $1.26 billion in outside resources from private businesses, foundations, and other sources, an amount exceeding the federal appropriation. Furthermore, a recent survey of AmeriCorps alumni found that eight out of 10 alumni say AmeriCorps benefited and advanced their career path, and that AmeriCorps alumni are more likely to attain a bachelor’s degree or higher than the average American adult.

“Now more than ever, we must come together as a country and find ways to help Americans realize their full potential. National service can help us achieve that goal,” Connolly said.

Details
14th Annual Friends of National Service Awards
Tuesday, February 14, 2017 from 6:30 – 8:30pm (pre-reception 5:30 – 6:30pm)
East Hall at Union Station, 50 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Washington, DC

The 14th Annual Friends of National Service Awards is sponsored by Comcast NBCUniversal, and CSX.

Voices for National Service is a diverse coalition of national service programs, state service commissions and individual champions, who work to ensure Americans of all ages and backgrounds have the opportunity to serve and volunteer in their community. Founded in 2003, Voices for National Service has built strong bipartisan support among our nation’s leaders and helped to elevate national service as a powerful strategy for tackling unmet needs, preparing young people for work, uniting our country and developing civic character.

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