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September 15, 2014

Leading service organizations join Obama and Clinton for AmeriCorps 20th anniversary

Weeks before the swearing in ceremony for AmeriCorps 20th anniversary Sylvie Lane, Vista Leader at Reading Partners, snapped a photo holding a sign in support of AmeriCorps. On the sign she had written “I am…changing the world.”

Sylvie was one of several exceptional leaders who took the stage in San Francisco as an AmeriCorps ambassador during the AmeriCorps 20th anniversary events on September 12. Thousands of Americorps members, alumni, policy makers, and supporters joined her in the Presidio during the ceremony, commemorating 20 years of national service. As she scanned the crowd, Sylvie was taken aback by the mass of young people just like her who took the AmeriCorps pledge and were eager to change the world.

At the same time, in Washington, DC, President Obama welcomed Reading Partners AmeriCorps members to the South Lawn of the White House. Reading Partners AmeriCorps members stood among the ranks of hundreds more members serving with other DC-based public service organizations. President Obama thanked AmeriCorps members past and present for their service and reflected on his time as a community organizer–the service that in many ways defined who he has become today.

The AmeriCorps spirit of service was palpable, with change-makers turning out in droves, from coast to coast and everywhere in-between. In his closing remarks the President stated:

“Seventy-five thousand members of this year’s AmeriCorps class will spread out across the country, and they are doing their part to help make America safer and healthier, and more fair and more just — because like all those who serve their country through AmeriCorps, they don’t just believe in, but live out a fundamental truth, and that is that people who love their country can change it.”

Reading Partners AmeriCorps members were present and celebrating in the seven states and the District of Columbia, where they work to change kid’s lives. Our AmeriCorps members empower students to become strong, lifelong readers, paving the way for academic success.

This year not only marks twenty years of AmeriCorps, but also serves as a landmark year for Reading Partners. This will be the first year in Reading Partners’ history that AmeriCorps members outnumber full-time staff!

As long as AmeriCorps members are in our schools, parks, centers, and throughout our communities, we will always have something to be grateful and hopeful for. Young people with a passion for service are a strong force for change.

Former President Bill Clinton, who joined President Obama at the White House, said, “To my last day on Earth, I will be grateful that I had a chance to start AmeriCorps.”

View more photos here
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AmeriCorps members get things done. From our hundreds of Site Coordinators working with volunteers and students in low-income schools across the country, to those who work to recruit men and women to become volunteer tutors, Reading Partners AmeriCorps members are committed to equipping students with the literacy skills necessary to become active, engaged, and successful members of society.

Become a volunteer reading partner today.
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