National Volunteer Week, 2013

Proclamation 8960 of April 19, 2013

National Volunteer Week, 2013

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

As Americans, we are inheritors to a legacy of
diversity unlike any other place on earth. We are home
to more than 300 million people who come from every
background, practice every faith, and hold every point
of view. But where difference could draw us apart, we
are bound together by a single sacred word: citizen. It
defines our way of life, and it captures our belief in
something bigger than ourselves--the notion that our
destiny is shared, and all of us do better when we
accept certain obligations to one another.

National Volunteer Week is a time to renew that
fundamentally American idea of service and
responsibility. It is also a time to recognize the men,
women, and children who bring that principle into
practice every day by lifting up the people around
them. Volunteering rates are the highest they have been
in years. More Americans are answering the call to
serve--not for fanfare or attention, but because they
want to give back. And as they do, they are making our
communities stronger. They are boosting local
economies. And they are building ladders of opportunity
for those who need them most.

My Administration is dedicated to helping more
Americans make that commitment. Through the Corporation
for National and Community Service, we are investing in
programs like AmeriCorps, FEMA Corps, and Senior Corps
so more people can focus their talents on improving our
neighborhoods. As we continue to draw down our forces
abroad, we are opening up new ways for Americans to
serve our veterans and military families here at home.
We are encouraging States to let workers on
unemployment insurance volunteer and build the skills
they need to find a job. And this year, we are
proposing new funding for the Volunteer Generation Fund
that would help nonprofits recruit, manage, and
maintain strong volunteer workforces. We also renamed
the program the George H.W. Bush Volunteer Generation
Fund, honoring the legacy of our 41st President and his
enduring commitment to volunteerism.

We need not look far to see the power of service. Less
than 6 months ago, when Hurricane Sandy bore down on
our Atlantic coast, Americans responded with compassion
and resolve. As an act of terror struck Boston at the
finish line of a great race, and an explosion in Texas
tore through a tight-knit community, we stood by each
other in times of need. Ordinary men and women have
stepped forward and accomplished extraordinary things
together, uniting as friends and neighbors and fellow
citizens. The strength they have shown reminds us that
even in our darkest hours, we look out for each other.
We pull together. And we move forward as one. During
National Volunteer Week, let us tap into that spirit
once more. To find a service opportunity nearby, visit
www.Serve.gov.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim April 21 through
April 27, 2013, as National Volunteer Week. I call upon
all Americans

to observe this week by volunteering in service
projects across our country and pledging to make
service a part of their daily lives.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord two
thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
seventh.