Encore.org Awards Creative Community Problem Solvers
Today we thought we’d highlight a great group of Americans who are doing amazing things in their communities.
The first ever Launch Pad contest awarded grants to people who created innovative solutions to problems facing their communities. The winners represent our great American diversity and both in their backgrounds and in the impact they generate.
From 30,000 nominations, winners of the Encore Launch Pad contest were selected by the public through a month long online voting period.
Points of Light Institute congratulates the five winners!
Anne Cheung, 59, from South Amboy, New Jersey. Cheung will work to develop a cancer support group that will provide information and support to Chinese speaking patients in New York City.
Anthony Genia, 68, from Lauderdale, Minnesota. Genia will create a culturally-responsive entrepreneurship curriculum to orient preteen Native Americans to the U.S. economic system and business world.
Linda Grotberg, 66, from Wimbledon, North Dakota. Grotberg will help local farmers make sunflower oil fuel to support renewable biofuel production which will help increase and maintain small farms and rural communities.
James Robinson, 47, from Huntsville, Alabama. Robinson will provide independent living services to LGBT youth in Alabama at risk for homelessness.
Janine Vanderburg, 57, from Denver, Colorado. Vanderburg will train corporate salespeople in nonprofit fundraising in an intensive fundraising program to help boomers with sales backgrounds transition to nonprofit fundraising.
All five will receive $5,000 each, plus resources and support from the larger Encore.org community to pursue their causes.
“The winners – and the tens of thousands of votes they collectively received – show that growing numbers of Americans in the second half of life are eager to put their ideas and experience to work for the public good,” says Alexandra Céspedes Kent, director of the Purpose Prize, another prize in conjuction with encore.org.
Click here for more information about the finalists and winners.
Who is making a difference in your community? Pay tribute to them here.
Reflections on African American History Month February 2011
Today’s post is written by Chelsea Murphy an External Affairs Coordinator at Points of Light Institute, a sports enthusiast, appreciator of the arts, and a recent graduate from Emory University.
This month Points of Light Institute began creating a galaxy of light by highlighting 1,000 “Points of Light” through tributes displayed on The Points of Light website Tribute Wall.
The Tribute Wall is a place to highlight individuals making a difference in communities everywhere.
Facebook users can share tributes on our Facebook Contest page for a chance to win a trip to Washington, D.C. (These posts will automatically also appear on the website Tribute Wall.)
Because African American history month is dedicated to celebrating and remembering the history, accomplishments, and triumphs of African American culture, I decided to specifically honor African Americans who influenced our nation.
To me, Dikembe Mutumbo is the essence of a “Point of Light,” one who has committed himself to improve health, education, and the quality of life of others.
He has been called the most generous athlete in the world for a reason. Not only is he extremely talented in basketball but he also formed the Dikembe Mutumbo foundation to help eradicate childhood diseases in developing countries. His foundation built a hospital in Congo, Africa, which has saved countless lives.
2011’s theme “African Americans and the Civil War” recognizes the efforts of people of African descent to destroy slavery and inaugurate universal freedom in the United States. The theme, chosen by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, urges all Americans to study and reflect on the value of their contribution to the nation.
In theme with the Civil War, I recognize Harriet Tubman as a renowned “Point of Light” of her time, a humanitarian in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, whose actions saved lives and as an abolitionist and spy put her life in danger to aid those who needed help.
Maya Angelou, a civil rights activist, poet, actress and another “Point of Light” in my mind, used her voice to lead others. She once said, “I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.” I love Maya Angelou’s sentiment and recognize those who have volunteered for the benefit of others and thank those who have given something back in their life.
Won’t you join me in creating a galaxy of light and recognize someone in your own life or to a famous icon like this video tribute to Carter G. Woodson who is honored as the “Father of Black history” on the Points of Light Tribute Wall.
President George H. W. Bush to be Honored at the Kennedy Center March 21st 2011
George Stevens, Jr., who is responsible for the Kennedy Center Honors and Christmas in Washington programs, will produce the event, along with his son, Michael Stevens. This event will honor the volunteering movement and continue to spark action for further civic engagement as we head into National Volunteer Week in April.
Michelle Nunn comments:
This remarkable coming together of individuals from across the political spectrum is conclusive proof that, while partisanship divides us, people at every level want to find opportunities to unite to make differences in their community without regard to party or politics.
You can unite with us and join Americans from across the country to recognize individual Points of Light in your communities through their words and actions. Today we are launching an innovative website that collects these Tributes and turns them into a virtual community committed to the power of service. Points of Light Institute is also holding a Facebook contestas another vehicle to honor individual Points of Light in communities across the country and to drive voluntary service.
Click here to write a Tribute to a Point of Light in your life on Facebook that will be posted to our virtual Tribute wall as well.
If you don’t have Facebook click here to honor a Point of Light on our virtual Tribute wall.
You can immediately begin helping your communities by signing up for local volunteer opportunities. Through the power of the Internet and the innovative access to information and organizing, we can each make a difference.
By making this event as much a call to action moving forward as a retrospective on a unique American life, we are paying ultimate honor to President Bush’s legacy.
Two “Points of Light”
Recognizing someone who has made a difference in your community has never been easier. Who inspires you with the way they serve others? Who makes your community a better place to live because of their voluntary efforts?
Points of Light Institute’s CEO, Michelle Nunn, recently recognized two “Points of Light” in her life.
Her first tribute is to President George H. W. Bush. recognizing him for his extraordinary life of service and for inspiring the “Points of Light” service movement that has been used by each President succeeding him.
She also recognized Richard Goldsmith who has tutored children on Saturdays at Park Lane Elementary School for twenty years and established the Discovery program which has been implemented in other schools.
You and the person you pay tribute to will have a chance to win airfare, lodging, and two tickets to the Points of Light Tribute event honoring President George H. W. Bush in Washington, D.C. on March 21, 2011. (Contest Ends March 07, 2011 @ 11:59 pm EST.)
SUBMIT: Either an essay, a photo, or a photo and an essay that pays tribute to either President H. W. Bush or a Point of Light in your life.
SHARE: Your tribute with friends and encourage them to go to the POLI Facebook page and like your tribute. The tributes that receive top 3 likes on Facebook will be eligible to win an expenses-paid trip to Washington D.C. and attend the Tribute Event.
VOTE: Your favorite tributes submitted by others.
A panel of Tribute Committee members will choose the submission that they determine best inspires a commitment to volunteer action from the three entries that receive the highest number of votes.
Inspire others to serve by recognizing someone who makes a difference in the world.
George P. Bush honors Grandfather, President George H. W. Bush, in USA Today
son and the grandson of President George H. W. Bush. The piece also highlights the upcoming Tribute event, which we will officially announce to the public next Tuesday morning, February 22nd. George P. Bush honors President George H. W. Bush’s extraordinary leadership in the American voluntary action movement and discusses his own inspiring path to service that started at a young age.
When I was 12, I went to Washington, D.C., to spend the summer with my grandparents in the White House, and one of the first things my grandmother did was to take me to volunteer at a soup kitchen in downtown Washington. Like any 12-year-old, I was reluctant at first, thinking that playing sports and hanging out with my friends were more important than volunteering. It was only later, when my passion for baseball combined with my family’s call to public service, that I understood the profound rewards of giving back.
George P. discusses the impact that his grandfather had on him personally with service and how he was inspired to join the Navy as well.
For me, the moment when I realized it was my turn to do my part for our country came on Oct. 7, 2006. That day, I witnessed my grandfather become the first living president in U.S history to participate in the christening of a warship named for him: the USS George H.W. Bush. . . Gampy’s remarks that day — a rare, personal window into his heroic service in World War II — affected me deeply. . . I knew then that I needed to do more. Soon afterward, I phoned my grandfather to let him know that I intended to follow in his footsteps and join the Navy. Several months later, I began my naval training.
Yesterday, in Washington, President Barack Obama highlighted the impressive achievements of the 2010 Presidential Freedom award winners at the White House. President Obama said, “This year’s Medal of Freedom recipients reveal the best of who we are and who we aspire to be.”
President Obama pointed out how one person can make a difference: “Generations from now, when parents teach their children what is meant by courage, the story of
will come to mind: an American who knew that change could not wait for some other person or some other time.”
Through the award winners President Obama shared strong American individual attributes that make up our nation:
When you look at the men and women who are here today, it says something about who we are as a people. When we award this medal to a Congressman John Lewis, it says that we aspire to be a more just, more equal, more perfect union. When we award it to a Jasper Johns, it says we value the original and the imaginative. When we award it to a Warren Buffett, it says we’d all like to be so humble and wise. . . And when we award it to former President George H. W. Bush, it says we celebrate an extraordinary life of service and of sacrifice.
George H. W. Bush was recognized for his impact on civic engagement as a person who has devoted nearly 70 of his 86 years to public service, starting on his 18
th
birthday the moment he joined the Navy. President Obama praised Bush saying:
His life is a testament that public service is a noble calling. . . I would add that, like the remarkable Barbara Bush, his humility and his decency reflects the very best of the American spirit. Those of you who know him, this is a gentleman; inspiring citizens to become “points of light” in service to others.
To honor George H. W. Bush or highlight a Point of Light in your life
President Barack Obama to Present George H. W. Bush with the 2010 Medal of Freedom Award Feb. 15, 2011
George H. W. Bush presents President Reagan with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1993
Today George H. W. Bush will be awarded the prestigious Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama alongside 14 other renowned citizens. In 1993 George H. W. Bush presented the Medal of Freedom to Ronald Reagan and now he himself is awarded for his civic service.The Medal of Freedom is a highly prestigious award that is given to individuals who make an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors. It is awarded to individuals selected by the current President or recommended to him by the Distinguished Civilian Service Awards Board.
You can watch the live stream of the ceremony taking place at the White House on February 15th; the recipients will receive their honors at 1:30 EST.
Some of the other awardees include environmentalist John H. Adams, poet Maya Angelou, and Holocaust survivor Gerda Weissmann Klein. In his announcement Obama commented: “all of [the awardees] have lived extraordinary lives that have inspired us, enriched our culture, and made our country and our world a better place.”
George H. W. commented about the Freedom award in his Fox News ‘On the Record’ interview with Greta Van Sustern on February 9th: “I view it as a real honor. When Obama called me about it, I was thrilled. And I consider the Medal of Freedom a special thing… I’m emotional about service to the country. It is the highest honor that a president can bestow on anybody. And the fact that he’s giving honor means a lot. And I told him so.”
Aside from this honor George H. W. Bush along with Mrs. George H. W. Bush will be recognized in the Points of Light Institute Tribute event March 2011 for their extraordinary lives of service.
You can recognize a Point of Light in your life whose volunteerism has positively impacted lives and inspired you to serve by entering the Points of Lights Institute’s Facebook contest. You and the person you pay tribute to will have a chance to win airfare, lodging, and two tickets to the Points of Light Tribute event honoring President George H. W. Bush in Washington, D.C. on March 21, 2011. Contest Ends March 07, 2011 @ 11:59 pm (EST).
18th Annual Corporate Engagement Award of Excellence
Applications are now being accepted for the 18th Annual Corporate Engagement Award of Excellence program. The awards are designed to honor those companies that have made a commitment to building strong and effective employee volunteer programs. These programs are powerful examples of the Principles of Excellence for Workplace Volunteering.
This year we launched new web pages that provide our customers with detailed information on the program. We also introduced two new features for the program that have never been done before:
Honorees will be selected based on their ability to demonstrate exemplary evidence of the Principles of Excellence for Workplace Volunteering and will be featured at a celebratory luncheon held during the National Conference on Volunteering and Service June 7, 2011 in New Orleans
Deadline for applications is March 25, 2011 11:59pm EST
As your work allows you to partner with corporations that do great work and non-profits that work with corporations to do great work, we would love for you to share this information with companies that you would like to see considered for this award.
More than 20 years ago, under President George H. W. Bush’s leadership, the Points of Light movement began, its core mission the advancement of the powerful American ideal of voluntary action.
Today this movement is stronger than ever and is proving to be one of President Bush’s greatest legacies.
Given the needs facing our country, the message of service and call to be a “point of light” is a powerful and relevant message.
As President Obama said at the Points of Light Institute Presidential Forum last year, “service isn’t separate from our national priorities, or secondary to our national priorities…It’s how we will meet the challenges of our time.”
In that same speech, President Obama went on to talk about President Bush’s vision: “He didn’t call for one blinding light shining from Washington — he didn’t just call for a few bright lights from the biggest nonprofits; but he called for “a vast galaxy of people and institutions working together to solve problems in their own backyard.”
To honor President and Mrs. George H. W. Bush and to celebrate the power of each person to create change, we invite you to help us create a “galaxy” of light.
We’d like to collect thousands of tributes here that can be shared with President George H. W. Bush, President Obama, and all of our living presidents to demonstrate the power of this idea – that America’s spirit of courage, compassion and patriotism is alive and well and demonstrated every day by heroic acts of service large and small.
Please share your own personal tribute to George and Barbara Bush and/or your tribute to someone who has been a “point of light” in your life or your community in the comments section below.
Anne Cheung, 59, from South Amboy, New Jersey. Cheung will work to develop a cancer support group that will provide information and support to Chinese speaking patients in New York City.
Anthony Genia, 68, from Lauderdale, Minnesota. Genia will create a culturally-responsive entrepreneurship curriculum to orient preteen Native Americans to the U.S. economic system and business world.
James Robinson, 47, from Huntsville, Alabama. Robinson will provide independent living services to LGBT youth in Alabama at risk for homelessness.
Janine Vanderburg, 57, from Denver, Colorado. Vanderburg will train corporate salespeople in nonprofit fundraising in an intensive fundraising program to help boomers with sales backgrounds transition to nonprofit fundraising.
Today’s post is written by Chelsea Murphy an External Affairs Coordinator at Points of Light Institute, a sports enthusiast, appreciator of the arts, and a recent graduate from Emory University.
