Communities all over the country are looking more and more at what measures, or indicators, are important in tracking community well being. Indicators of civic engagement are vitally important in reflecting how communities are tied together through collective and individual actions. Measures of civic engagement often include data such as voter registration, public library use and volunteerism. Of all the measures, none is a more universal expression of civic engagement - and civic leadership - than volunteerism. In all of its forms and functions, citizen volunteerism is vital to both the individual and the community. And so to understand the diverse range of civic engagement in a community is to understand the myriad of volunteer efforts that contribute to community well-being each and every day.

This week is National Volunteer Week, a tradition that began in 1974 to recognize ordinary people achieving extraordinary results, and this year's theme is Celebrating Service. In Sarasota County, citizen volunteers enhance the community in so many ways from participating in non-profit organizations to augmenting services in local libraries to helping a neighbor in need. And in an area with so many part-time residents and a steady stream of newcomers, volunteer opportunities become a point of integration as life-long residents volunteer alongside others who just moved to town. Through volunteers working together, the community is enriched as each individual engages their time, talent and energy to the benefit of the community at large. For Sarasota County, civic engagement through volunteerism is a true measure of success.

John McCarthy