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Volunteer Awards, Washington, DC 4/11/89 [OA 8130]
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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S
FOIA
MARKER
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the George Bush Presidential
Library Staff.
Record Group/Collection:
George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
Collection/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting, White House Office of
Series:
Smith, Curt, Files
Subseries:
Chron File, 1989-1992
OA/ID Number:
13888
Folder ID Number:
13888-005
Folder Title:
Volunteer Awards, Washington D.C., 4/11/89
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Section:
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G
18
29
1
4
(Smith/Martin)
April 5, 1989
Draft Three
AWARD
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: VOLUNTEER AWARDS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1989
Honored guests, ladies and gentlemen.
Good afternoon, and let me welcome you to the White House.
And let me also add that I have a confession to make.
You know, it's been said -- now, this will shock you --that
sometimes I have a hard time being understood. But I'll admit,
it's true. And all I can say is that I'm in some extinguished
company.
After all, it was Yogi Berra who, when asked, "Are you a
fatalist?" replied, "No, I never collected postage stamps." And
Danny Ozark, baseball's master of the malaprop, once observed of
his ballplayers, "Contrary to popular belief, I've always had a
wonderful repertoire with them."
See what I mean? Even silver-tongued orators often have
their meaning blurred.
Well, today, let no one blur our message. Let it ring loud
and clear. America is great because America is good. And
-2-
America gets her greatest deeds from the basic decency of you,
the American people.
We see that decency everywhere -- in a child-care center, at
the Rotary or Little League, in a synagogue or church. It means
lending a hand, tending a wound, and helping the less fortunate.
This is Volunteer Week, a time to celebrate those qualities.
And it is my honor today to present the 1989 President's
Volunteer Action Awards. These awards were first presented in
1982. And, since then, 148 Americans have been recognized and
honored.
I have said that any definition of a successful life must
include serving others. Today's award recipients embody that
definition. They know that life -- real life -- is not a ledger
board.
Eleven years ago, Rose Tichy began tutoring adults through a
church-sponsored literacy program in Middleburg Heights, Ohio.
She loved her work, but there weren't enough adult-level books to
fit her students' needs. So Rose got out her pen, and enriched
the printed page. Since 1978, she's written 32 books, and edited
the more than 100 books developed by her writers group.
Down in Huntsville, Alabama, Chessie Harris once took
several abandoned children into her two-bedroom home. But when
-3-
the Welfare Department demanded a boarding license, the Harrises
built a house on land purchased with money from the sale of a
family farm. Since 1958, that site has been a home for more than
800 children -- or about 10 for each of Chessie's 82 years
[PAUSE]
800 children? [PAUSE]
sounds like a typical
weekend with my grandkids in Kennebunkport.
Today, Allison Stieglitz is 15 years old. But she was only
12 when she asked her parents to use the money they had planned
to spend on her Bar Mitzvah to provide Thanksgiving baskets for
needy families. That first year, she gave out 15 baskets; in
1988, she donated 75. And in Miami, Allison has begun a Sunday
breakfast and bag lunch program in two local temples.
Rose Tichey, Chessie Harris, and Allison Stieglitz, and this
year's other 15 President's Awards winners, were chosen from
nearly 2,000 nominations. They -- you -- know that prosperity
without purpose means nothing. Instead, you revere what
matters: the simple, the basic, things like decency, goodness,
self-discipline, compassion.
As President, I want to assist those things -- for they form
the heart of volunteerism, and of these President's Awards. That
is why we have opened the Office of National Service, which is
leading this Administration's community and national service
programs.
-4-
This Office will help you help others. It will alert the
public to community service. And challenge individuals, schools,
and corporations to expand existing programs. And it will
promote community-based efforts to combat social problems which
fray the American fabric.
Toward that end, I am announcing today my intent to unveil
by May 15 the Points of Light Foundation, which I will chair, and
which will help business spur volunteerism And also by that
date, I will send legislation to the Congress proposing our
Administration's Y-E-S or YES Program --- Youth Entering Service.
youth
Here, Americans of junior and senior high school age can give
of, not to, themselves. By saying "Yes" to America, they can
define a successful life.
Of course, that's what you've already done. For you know
that volunteerism never asks, "What can I do for myself?" It
asks, "What can I do by myself?" Yes, volunteerism views
government as an instrument of healing. But it also says that we
have surpassed --- far surpassed -- the limits of what government
alone can do.
Consider that today, government spends $ billion each
-
year on human resources. But did you know that Americans
contribute - volunteer hours annually? At $7 an hour, that's $
- each year in community service -- or more than per cent of
—
what the government spends.
-5-
We must, and can, do even better. For it is the private
sector -- and individuals -- which have the responsibility -- and
the resources -- to confront issues like hunger, health care,
homelessness, and drug abuse. Our challenge is to use those
resources to meet our responsibility. For we are a nation, and a
family: helping, enriching, and caring for each other.
That great sports executive, Branch Rickey, observed that
"Luck is the residue of design." My friends, America's luck is
the residue of volunteerism's design. Volunteerism works
because it does not view Americans as black and white, laborer
and manager, the privileged and the poor. Instead, volunteerism
regards Americans as Americans. And it speaks of generosity,
involvement, and love of country -- for volunteerism is the
highest plane of patriotism.
Volunteerism says that individuals -- like communities --
can join hands, and exchange gifts, for the good of America. One
person can tutor an inner-city child; that child can some day
become an engineer or artist. And if he's lucky, he will benefit
from someone whose life is itself a gift. Like the man I'm
honored to honor, now.
Twenty-two years ago, having moved to the East Village in
New York to help the urban poor, Father Bruce Ritter opened his
door one night to see six children. They were asking for a place
-6-
to stay. Well, eventually, Father Ritter founded Covenant House
to provide a shelter for abandoned and runaway children. Today,
his program involves over 300 volunteers each month. And it
offers shelter to more than 25,000 children each year.
Last year, a new award was created to honor the individual
or organization whose contribution to volunteerism is greatest
among those winning the President's Volunteer Action Awards. And
so I'm pleased to announce Father Ritter as the first recipient
of an award named for a great President and my good friend: The
Ronald Reagan Award for Volunteer Excellence.
Father Ritter, like you, has enriched the American family.
And in that spirit, let me close on a personal note
about a
hero, if you will.
Lou Gehrig was a Hall of Fame first baseman in the 1920s and
'30s. He played in 2,130 straight games -- a record which still
stands. But more than that, he was a good and decent man about
whom a teammate said, "Every day, any day, he just went out and
did his job. " And when he was stricken, fifty years ago, by a
form of paralysis which today bears his name, Lou Gehrig, now
dying, told the crowd at Yankee Stadium, "I consider myself the
luckiest man on the face of the earth."
This story has become an American parable. But less known is
that after he left the Yankees -- for the final two years of his
-6-
to stay. Well, eventually, Father Ritter founded Covenant House
to provide a shelter for abandoned and runaway children. Today,
his program involves over 300 volunteers each month. And it
offers shelter to more than 25,000 children each year.
Last year, a new award was created to honor the individual
or organization whose contribution to volunteerism is greatest
among those winning the President's Volunteer Action Awards. And
so I'm pleased to announce Father Ritter as the first recipient
of an award named for a great President and my good friend: The
Ronald Reagan Award for Volunteer Excellence.
Father Ritter, like you, has enriched the American family.
And in that spirit, let me close on a personal note
about a
hero, if you will.
Lou Gehrig was a Hall of Fame first baseman in the 1920s and
'30s. He played in 2,130 straight games -- a record which still
stands. But more than that, he was a good and decent man about
whom a teammate said, "Every day, any day, he just went out and
did his job.' And when he was stricken, fifty years ago, by a
form of paralysis which today bears his name, Lou Gehrig, now
dying, told the crowd at Yankee Stadium, "I consider myself the
luckiest man on the face of the earth."
This story has become an American parable. But less known is
that after he left the Yankees -- for the final two years of his
-7-
life -- Lou Gehrig served his fellow man. Sitting at his desk,
weaker by the day, he could barely move his body. But as a
parole commissioner for the City of New York, he counseled and
inspired kids. They called him the Iron Horse, the Pride of the
Yankees. Yes, Lou Gehrig was a hero.
To serve others and to ennoble your community --this, truly,
defines a successful life. For success is personal, and it is
charitable -- the sum not of our possessions, but of how we treat
our neighbors.
My friends, on that score, you've hit a grand-slam home
run. Congratulations to each of you, and thank you for coming
here. God bless you, and God bless America.
# # # #
(Smith/Martin)
April 5, 1989
Draft Three
AWARD
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: VOLUNTEER AWARDS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1989
Honored guests, ladies and gentlemen.
Good afternoon, and let me welcome you to the White House.
And let me also add that I have a confession to make.
You know, it's been said -- now, this will shock you --that
sometimes I have a hard time being understood. But I'll admit,
it's true. And all I can say is that I'm in some extinguished
company.
After all, it was Yogi Berra who, when asked, "Are you a
fatalist?" replied, "No, I never collected postage stamps." And
Danny Ozark, baseball's master of the malaprop, once observed of
his ballplayers, "Contrary to popular belief, I've always had a
wonderful repertoire with them."
See what I mean? Even silver-tongued orators often have
their meaning blurred.
Well, today, let no one blur our message. Let it ring loud
and clear. America is great because America is good. And
America gets her greatest deeds from the basic decency of you,
the American people.
We see that decency everywhere -- in a child-care center, at
the Rotary or Little League, in a synagogue or church. It means
lending a hand, tending a wound, and helping the less fortunate.
This is Volunteer Week, a time to celebrate those qualities.
And it is my honor today to present the 1989 President's
Volunteer Action Awards. These awards were first presented in
1982. And, since then, 148 Americans have been recognized and
honored.
I have said that any definition of a successful life must
include serving others. Today's award recipients embody that
definition. They know that life -- real life -- is not a ledger
board. A successful life says that what we are matters more than
what we have.
Eleven years ago, Rose Tichy began tutoring adults through a
church-sponsored literacy program in Middleburg Heights, Ohio.
She loved her work, but there weren't enough adult-level books to
fit her students' needs. So Rose got out her pen, and enriched
the printed page. Since 1978, she's written 32 books, and edited
the more than 100 books developed by her writers group.
Down in Huntsville, Alabama, Chessie Harris has done more
rearing than writing. Years ago, she took several abandoned
children into her two-bedroom home. But when the Welfare
Department demanded a boarding license, the Harrises built a
house on land purchased with money from the sale of a family
farm. Since 1958, that site has been a home for more than 800
children -- or about 10 for each of Chessie's 82 years [PAUSE]
800 children? [PAUSE]
sounds like a typical weekend
with my grandkids in Kennebunkport.
Today, Allison Stieglitz is 15 years old. But she was only
12 when she asked her parents to use the money they had planned
to spend on her Bar Mitzvah to provide Thanksgiving baskets for
needy families. That first year, she gave out 15 baskets; in
1988, she donated 75. And in Miami, Allison has begun a Sunday
breakfast and bag lunch program in two local temples.
Rose Tichey, Chessie Harris, and Allison Stieglitz, and this
year's other 15 President's Awards winners, were chosen from
nearly 2,000 nominations. They -- you -- know that prosperity
without purpose means nothing. Instead, you revere what
matters: the simple, the basic, things like decency, goodness,
self-discipline, compassion.
As President, I want to assist those things -- for they form
the heart of volunteerism, and of these President's Awards. That
is why we have opened the Office of National Service, which is
contribute volunteer hours annually? At $7 an hour, that's $
each year in community service --- or more than per cent of
-
what the government spends.
We must, and can, do even. better. For it is the private
sector -- and individuals -- which have the responsibility -- and
the resources -- to confront issues like hunger, health care,
homelessness, and drug abuse. Our challenge is to use those
resources to meet our responsibility. For we are a nation, and a
family: helping, enriching, and caring for each other.
M
quess
My friends, volunteerism works -- through 1,000 Points of
Light, and through you because it does not view Americans as
black and white, laborer and manager, the privileged and the
poor. Instead, volunteerism regards Americans as Americans. And
it speaks of generosity, involvement, and love of country -- for
volunteerism is the highest plane of patriotism.
Volunteerism says that individuals -- like communities --
can join hands, and exchange gifts, for the good of America. One
person can tutor an inner-city child; that child can some day
become an engineer or artist. And if he's lucky, he will benefit
from someone whose life is itself a gift. Like the man I'm
honored to honor, now.
Twenty-two years ago, having moved to the East Village in
New York to help the urban poor, Father Bruce Ritter opened his
door one night to see six children. They were asking for a place
to stay. Well, eventually, Father Ritter founded Covenant House
to provide a shelter for abandoned and runaway children. Today,
his program involves over 300 volunteers each month. And it
offers shelter to more than 25,000 children each year.
Last year, a new award was created to honor the individual
or organization whose contribution to volunteerism is greatest
among those winning the President's Volunteer Action Awards. And
so I'm pleased to announce Father Ritter as the first recipient
of an award named for a great President and my good friend: The
Ronald Reagan Award for Volunteer Excellence.
Father Ritter, like you, has enriched the American family.
And in that spirit, let me close on a personal note
about a
hero, if you will.
Lou Gehrig was a Hall of Fame first baseman in the 1920s and
'30s. He played in 2,130 straight games -- a record which still
stands. But more than that, he was a good and decent man about
whom a teammate said, "Every day, any day, he just went out and
did his job.' And when he was stricken, fifty years ago, by a
form of paralysis which today bears his name, Lou Gehrig, now
dying, told the crowd at Yankee Stadium, "I consider myself the
luckiest man on the face of the earth."
This story has become an American parable. But less known is
that after he left the Yankees -- for the final two years of his
life -- Lou Gehrig served his fellow man. Sitting at his desk,
)
weaker by the day, he could barely move his body. But as a
parole commissioner for the City of New York, he counseled and
inspired kids. They called him the Iron Horse, the Pride of the
Yankees. Yes, Lou Gehrig was a hero.
To serve others and to ennoble your community -- -this, truly,
defines a successful life. For success is personal, and it is
charitable -- the sum not of our possessions, but of how we treat
our neighbors.
My friends, on that score, you' ve hit a grand-slam home
run. Congratulations to each of you, and thank you for coming
here. God bless you, and God bless America.
# # # #
leading this Administration's community and national service
programs.
This Office will help you help others. It will alert the
public to community service. And challenge individuals, schools,
and corporations to expand existing programs. And it will
promote community-based efforts to combat social problems which
fray the American fabric.
Toward that end, I am announcing today my intent to unveil
by May 15 the Points of Light Foundation, which I will chair, and
which will help business spur volunteerism. And also by that
date, I will send legislation to the Congress proposing our
Administration's Y-E-S or YES Program -- Youth Entering Service.
Here, Americans of junior- and senior-high-school age can give
of, not to, themselves. By saying "Yes" to America, they can
define a successful life.
Of course, that's what you've already done. For you know
that volunteerism never asks, "What can I do for myself?" It
asks, "What can I do by myself?" Yes, volunteerism views
government as an instrument of healing. But it also says that we
have surpassed -- far surpassed -- the limits of what government
alone can do.
Consider that today, government spends $ billion each
-
year on human resources. But did you know that Americans
(Smith/Martin)
April 10, 1989
Draft Five
AWARD
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: VOLUNTEER AWARDS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1989
Honored guests, ladies and gentlemen.
Good afternoon, and let me welcome you to the White House.
And let me also add that I have a confession to make.
You know, it's been said -- now, this will shock you --that
sometimes I have a hard time being understood. But I'll admit,
it's true. And all I can say is that I'm in some distinguished
company.
After all, it was Yogi Berra who, when asked if he had seen
Doctor Zhivago, allegedly replied, "No, I feel fine." And Danny
Ozark, baseball's master of the malaprop, once observed of his
ballplayers, "Contrary to popular belief, I've always had a
wonderful repertoire with them."
See what I mean? Even silver-tongued orators often have
their meaning blurred.
2
Well, this morning, let no one blur our message. Let it
ring loud and clear. America is great because America is good.
And America's greatest deeds come from the basic decency and
compassion of her people -- each of you here today.
We see that decency and compassion everywhere ---- in a child-
care center, at the Rotary or Little League, in a synagogue or
church. It means lending a hand, tending a wound, and helping
the less fortunate.
This is Volunteer Week, a time to celebrate those qualities.
And it is my honor today to present the 1989 President's
Volunteer Action Awards. These awards were first presented in
1982. And, since then, 148 Americans have been recognized and
honored.
I have said that from now on, any definition of a successful
life must include serving others. Today's award-recipients
embody that definition.
Eleven years ago, Rose Tichy [TISH-ee] began tutoring adults
through a church-sponsored literacy program in Middleburg
Heights, Ohio. She loved her work, but there weren't enough
adult-level books to fit her students' needs. So Rose got out
her pen, and enriched the printed page. Since 1978, she's
written 32 books, and edited the more than 100 books developed by
her writers group.
3
Down in Huntsville, Alabama, Chessie Harris once took
several abandoned children into her two-bedroom home. But when
the Welfare Department demanded a boarding license, the Harrises
built a house on land purchased with money from the sale of a
family farm. Since 1958, that site has been a home for more than
800 children -- or about 10 for each of Chessie's 82 years
[PAUSE]
800 children? [PAUSE]
sounds like a typical
weekend with my grandkids in Kennebunkport.
Today, Allison Stieglitz [STEEG-litz] is 15 years old. But
she was only 12 when she asked her parents to use the money they
had planned to spend on her Bat [BOT] Mitzvah to provide
Thanksgiving baskets for needy families. That first year, she
gave out 15 baskets; in 1988, she donated 75. And in Miami,
Allison has begun a Sunday breakfast and bag lunch program in two
local temples.
Rose Tichey, Chessie Harris, and Allison Stieglitz, and this
year's other 15 President's Awards winners, were chosen from
nearly 1,500 nominations. They ---- you -- know that prosperity
without purpose means nothing. Instead, you revere what
matters: simple, fundamental values like decency, goodness,
self-discipline, compassion.
As President, I want to promote those basic values -- for
they form the heart of volunteerism, and of these President's
4
Awards. That is why we have opened the Office of National
Service, which is leading our Administration's national service
movement.
This Office will encourage partnerships between all levels
of government, private enterprise, and voluntary organizations.
It will take things that work, and carry them to the Nation. And
it will enlist new volunteers in community-based efforts to
combat urgent social ills. And toward that end, soon I will
announce our Administration's Y-E-S or YES to America Program --
Youth Entering Service. Here, American youth can give of, not to,
themselves. By saying "Yes" to America, they can define a
successful life.
Of course, that's what you've already done. You know that
volunteerism never asks, "What can I do for myself?" It asks,
"What can I do myself for others?" Yes, government can and
should be a catalyst of caring. Its role is critical. But we
have surpassed -- far surpassed -- the limits of what government
alone can do.
Volunteerism says that it is the private sector which has
the responsibility ---- the understanding -- and the resources ---
to confront issues like hunger, health care, homelessness,
illiteracy, teen pregnancy, and drug abuse. Our challenge is to
use that understanding and those resources to meet our
responsibility. For we are a nation, and a family: helping,
enriching, and caring for each other. And as a family, we are
committed to a nation-wide effort.
Volunteerism says that individuals --- like communities --
can join hands, and exchange talents, for the good of America.
One person can tutor an inner-city student; that boy or girl can
some day become an engineer or artist. The child-turned-adult
will then become a role model to others. Which brings me to the
man I'm so pleased to honor, now.
)
[Twenty-two years ago, having moved to the East Village in
New York to help the urban poor, Father Bruce Ritter opened his
door one night to see six children. They were asking for a place
to stay. Eventually, Father Ritter founded Covenant House to
provide a shelter for abandoned and runaway children. Today, his
program involves over 300 volunteers each month. And it offers
shelter to more than 25,000 children each year.
Because of Covenant House, a child has escaped heroin
addiction; another no longer yearns for a decent meal; still
another views the world as a warm, not sullen, place. It is an
American success story almost without parallel.
Last year, a new award was created to honor the individual
or organization whose contribution to volunteerism is greatest
among those winning the President's Volunteer Action Awards. And
so I'm pleased to announce Father Ritter as this Administration's
first recipient of an award named for a great President and my
good friend: The Ronald Reagan Award for Volunteer Excellence
[PAUSE].
role models I eah of
Fellow volunteers, all of you have enriched the American
Spirit. And in that spirit, let me close on a personal note
about a hero, if you will.
Lou Gehrig was a Hall of Fame first baseman in the 1920s and
'30s. He played in 2,130 straight games --- a record which still
stands. But more than that, he was a good and decent man about
whom a teammate said, "Every day, any day, he just went out and
did his job." Fifty years ago, Lou Gehrig was stricken by a form
of paralysis which today bears his name. Even so, he told the
crowd at Yankee Stadium, "I consider myself the luckiest man on
the face of the earth."
This story has become an American parable. But less known is
that after he left the Yankees -- for much of the last two years
of his life - Lou Gehrig served his fellow man. Dying, weaker
by the day, he could barely move his body. But as a parole
commissioner for the City of New York, he counseled and inspired
kids. They called him the Iron Horse, the Pride of the Yankees.
Yes, Lou Gehrig was a hero.
To serve others and to enrich your community --this, truly,
defines a successful life. For success is personal, and it is
charitable -- the sum not of our possessions, but of how we help
our neighbors.
My friends, on that score, you've hit a grand-slam home
run. Congratulations to each of you, and thank you for coming
today. May your example inspire and uplift others. God bless
you, and God bless America.
# # # #