President Unveils New Web Site To Encourage Americans To Answer Call To Service
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President Unveils New Web Site And PSA Campaign To Encourage Americans To Answer Call To Service
Jul 30, 2002 - U.S. Newswire
WASHINGTON, July 30 /U.S. Newswire/ -- To mark the six-month anniversary of the USA Freedom Corps, President Bush today unveiled a new Web site and public service advertising campaign designed to get more Americans involved in serving their neighbors, their communities, and their nation.
The PSA campaign, titled "Everyone Can Do Something," consists of television and radio ads in English and Spanish, as well as print ads and web banners. The campaign features the President and celebrities including New York Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera, actress Angie Harmon, and former U.S. Senators Robert Dole and John Glenn.
The Web site, at www.usafreedomcorps.gov, boasts a complete redesign and features the USA Freedom Corps Volunteer Network, the largest clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities ever created. Using a newly developed, state-of-the-art search engine, Americans can now find volunteer opportunities with nonprofit groups, faith-based organizations, and government agencies anywhere in the country, and even abroad, with a single click of the mouse.
Both projects are designed to encourage Americans to answer the President's Call to Service. As part of his State of the Union address on January 29, 2002, President Bush called on all Americans to dedicate at least two years of their lives-the equivalent of 4,000 hours-to volunteer service. He also created the USA Freedom Corps, a White House initiative charged with coordinating volunteer efforts, creating additional opportunities for Americans to serve, and making it easier for them to do so. The goal of the USA Freedom Corps is to foster a culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility in America.
Two programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, are key federal components of that effort. USA Freedom Corps also includes the Peace Corps, which provides opportunities for Americans to serve abroad, and the newly created Citizen Corps, which is designed to help meet the emerging homeland security needs of the nation in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks.
The Corporation played a significant role in the development of both the Web site and the PSA campaign, in part by securing financial support from private organizations. The PSA campaign was made possible because of a gift from The Walt Disney Company to the Corporation. The Corporation also partnered with the online philanthropy portal Network for Good, which raised cash and in-kind contributions from the AOL Time Warner Foundation, Microsoft, and the Cisco Systems Foundation to develop and promote the new FreedomCorps.gov Web site and the USA Freedom Corps Volunteer Network search engine. The UPS Foundation is making a gift to the Corporation to provide ongoing support to the Web site, which is hosted on the Corporation's servers.
"We are very grateful to Network for Good, the Walt Disney Company, the UPS Foundation, and the other companies and foundations for recognizing the value of citizen service and for supporting the USA Freedom Corps," said Leslie Lenkowsky, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service. The Corporation is permitted by law to solicit and receive funds from private foundations, corporations, and individuals to support its mission.
The new Web site and search engine are the result of an unprecedented collaboration between government and nonprofit organizations that serve the voluntary sector. In addition to Network for Good, nonprofit partners in the USA Freedom Corps Volunteer Network include America's Promise, the National Mentoring Partnership, Points of Light Foundation, Youth Service America's SERVEnet, the United Way, and VolunteerMatch. In addition to the Corporation for National and Community Service and its AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs, other government partners include the Peace Corps, Citizen Corps, and the Department of the Interior.
The result of this unique collaboration is an online database of volunteer opportunities with more than 50,000 nonprofit organizations and major federal agencies. Citizens simply key in their zip code and/or area of interest (i.e., education, health, the environment) and are immediately connected with volunteer opportunities that match their interests.
"This Web site is a demonstration of what can be done when the government, the private sector, and the non-profit sector collaborate and leverage technology around issues which are important to everyone," said Stephen Goldsmith, Chairman of the Board of the Corporation for National and Community Service. "This project is a step in the right direction for using technology to bring information to all Americans, which will allow for more active citizenship."
The new PSA campaign, produced by the nonprofit Ad Council, uses humor as a way to encourage every American to answer the President's Call to Service. In addition, each PSA concludes with President Bush's appeal, "When you help your neighbors, you help your nation. Everyone can do something." All of the ads direct Americans to visit www.usafreedomcorps.gov or call 1-877-USA-CORPS to find ways to get involved in volunteer service.
The Ad Council is distributing the PSA's nationwide to more than 15,000 television, radio and print outlets. Ad agency BBDO New York donated creative services to the Ad Council for the three television PSA's and three radio spots, and the Martin Agency donated its time and talent to the Ad Council to develop newspaper ads. The National Association of Broadcasters donated its services for the digital television distribution, while FastChannel Network donated its services for newspaper and radio distribution. In accordance with the Ad Council's model, all of the public service ads will be run in advertising time and space donated by the media.
The Corporation for National and Community Service was established in 1993 to engage Americans of all ages and backgrounds in service to their communities. The Corporation oversees AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America and Senior Corps, engaging more than two million Americans in service to their communities and country each year. For more information, visit www.nationalservice.org.
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