Global Youth Service Day is the largest annual service event in the world. GYSD highlights and celebrates the difference youth make in their communities year-round through community service and service-learning. On April 24-26, 2009, millions of young will participate in and lead service projects in all 50 states and in more than 100 countries around the world. Young people, working with their families, schools, community organizations, faith-based communities, and businesses, will improve their communities by addressing critical issues such as global climate change, education & illiteracy, poverty, health, hunger, and homelessness.

Through our Global Youth Service Grants program, we distributed over $185,000 to support 269 service projects, including:

• 100 State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grant project organizers received $1,000 to support semester-long service-learning projects.
• 69 Disney Minnie Grant project organizers received $500 to support service projects that engage youth ages 5-14 in community service or service-learning.
• 100 UnitedHealth HEROES Service-Learning Grant project organizers received $500 or $1,000 to support youth-led service-learning projects addressing the issue of childhood obesity.

The Dollars for Change Grant is currently accepting applications and the next round of applications for the Disney Minnie Grant will launch next week. Stay up to date on the latest Grant & Award announcements from YSA at http://www.ysa.org/awards

First Lady Michelle Obama Remarks on Service
In addition to her letter to the editor last week in USA Today ("Nation needs youthful idealism more than ever") she also made remarks today while speaking with children of White House employees on Take Your Child to Work Day. She said, "But most of all we want you to think about serving your communities, because you don't have to be a White House employee to do it.  You can do it now.  You can do it first of all by listening to your parents. That's a service in and of itself, just being a good kid.  But you could volunteer at a homeless shelter, right?  You could work for a soup kitchen.  You could volunteer in a garden.  You could help tutor another kid in your class who's having trouble.  You could walk your neighbor's dog, mow the lawn.  There's so much that you can do right now. And we want you all to start thinking now about what you can do to be good public servants, not when you grow up but right now." YSA President & CEO Steve Culbertson commends Michelle Obama's focus on youth in a letter to the editor "Harness energy of youth to serve others" in Wednesday's USA Today: http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2009/04/harness-energy-of-young-people-to-serve-others.html


Senators Murkowski, Dodd Receive Prestigious Harris Wofford Award from Youth Service America
Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) received the Harris Wofford Award for Public Officials yesterday at a ceremony held in the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center at 3:00. The Senators were honored for their outstanding commitment to national service initiatives. The Harris Wofford Awards, presented by Youth Service America and sponsored by State Farm Companies Foundation, were established in 2002 to honor former Senator Harris Wofford, one of our nation's greatest public servants and long-time board member of Youth Service America.

Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a recipient of the Harris Wofford Public Official Award, has introduced a U.S. Senate resolution each year since 2003, with as many as 43 co-sponsors, officially recognizing Global Youth Service Day and honoring young people who serve their communities across the country and around the world. She also helped secure recognition of Global Youth Service Day in the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. In addition, she participates in Global Youth Service Day celebrations each year in Alaska organized by Anchorage's Promise, a GYSD Lead Agency, and issues a press release recognizing all GYSD projects that take place in Alaska. Watch a video of Senator Murkowski's remarks.

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), a recipient of the Harris Wofford Public Official Award, is an alumnus of the Peace Corps and a longtime champion of national and community service. Senator Dodd is the Co-Chair of the Senate National Service Caucus. He introduced the Semester of Service Act that would offer young people the chance to spend a semester in service as part of service-learning programs for academic credit as well as the Summer of Service Act that would provide middle school students with a chance to serve in their local communities over the summer months. Both Semester of Service and Summer of Service were included in the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. Senator Dodd has also introduced the Peace Corps Volunteer Empowerment Act, the AmeriCorps: Together Improving Our Nation Act, and the Encore Service Act.

June 22-24, 2009
2009 National Conference on Volunteering & Service
San Francisco, CA
http://www.volunteeringandservice.org/

The National Conference on Volunteering and Service is the world's largest gathering of volunteer and service leaders from the nonprofit, government, and corporate sectors. Co-convened by Points of Light Institute and the Corporation for National and Community Service, the annual event provides attendees with an opportunity to learn, connect, and be inspired through a wide range of exciting and informative plenary sessions, workshops, special events, service projects, exhibits, specialized corporate tracks and more.

2009 Conference Goals

• Learn best practices, trends, strategies and new ways of doing business from the nation's best thinkers and practitioners of service and volunteering through more than 175 workshops, forums and plenary sessions.
• Connect with peers, funders, experts and leaders from the business, government and nonprofit sectors. Get plugged in before you come, through our Facebook event, Twitter feed and blog.
• Be Inspired by dynamic speakers and stimulating forums, in a place known for exciting innovation. Recharge, engage and bring back new ideas and civic energy to strengthen the reach and impact of your organization.

As the world's largest gathering of volunteer and service leaders from the nonprofit, government, and corporate sectors, all are invited to join us in San Francisco. If you or your organization deals with volunteers in any capacity, this is an event you do not want to miss!

Attendees typically include:

• Volunteer coordinators and supervisors
• Nonprofit professionals
• Workplace volunteer managers
• Leaders in Corporate Social Responsibility
• AmeriCorps/Senior Corps program directors and staff
• Social entrepreneurs
• HandsOn affiliates and volunteer centers
• AmeriCorps Alums
• Members of the California Service Corps and national service members And anyone else ready to pave the way for a fresh approach to civic engagement.