Home > News > Ideas offered for Obama’s call to service
Ideas offered for Obama’s call to service
16th of March 2009
Forty-one youth, volunteers and neighbors gathered at the Sasha Bruce House Shelter on March 4 to discuss ways to heed Barack Obama’s call to service. Hear their ideas for improving our communities and building the agency’s volunteer service capacity.
Then President-elect Barack Obama visited the Sasha Bruce House Shelter on Inauguration Eve to perform community service. This visit afforded wide exposure of SBY’s mission nationally and internationally. In a message relayed through television, radio and the internet, Obama called on all Americans to roll up their sleeves and to commit to serving others. He cited the youth with whom he was working at the shelter as an “untapped” source of volunteerism and ideas for improving our communities.
By selecting SBY as the place where he promoted his message of community service and volunteerism, we must assume a leadership role in following through with Obama’s call to action. Thus, Executive Director Deborah Shore convened a “Heed the Call” meeting at the Shelter on March 4 to gather youth and community members’ input on ways that we can follow-up. Forty-one individuals attended this meeting and a wide ranging discussion of what role this agency can play was facilitated by Erica Debardeleben, Director of SBY’s Youth-Led Program.
Participants offered a wide range of ideas to improve our communities as follows:
• Strengthened families – Keep family units together
• Get involved with churches to help families
• Change ourselves – Personal development
• Campaign for respect
• Develop support systems for teens
• Neighborhood clean-up work parties
• Positive youth networking opportunities
• Support fathers and mothers
• Create positive media
• Build relationships in the community
• Job readiness training
• Find hope
• Change our attitudes
Next Steps:
In the short term, these ideas should be incorporated into a letter to the President from Deborah Shore and the President of SBY’s Youth Advisory Board. This letter would demonstrate our commitment to being a leader in our community and it will invite the President to continue his work with us.
SBY has been fortunate to enlist the volunteer support of Erika Henderson and Paul Stovall to help us plan next steps and to build the service capacity of the agency. We have planned a Phase II volunteer work project at the Bruce House for Friday, May 15. A design firm has offered some drawings and access to materials to continue interior beautification of the shelter. Work on the girl’s bedroom and development of a new computer/education room are possibilities for this second work party. We project that 30 volunteer workers will be needed that day. Best would be a mix of youth and adults. Part of that day will be another group discussion to further develop and act on the ideas outlined above.
Contact Jim Beck at 202-675-9340 or jbeck@sashabruce.org for more information. And stay tuned for updates!