Philanthropy Front and Center-Atlanta

September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance

Today marks the first September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance. President Obama has called upon people nationwide to commemorate this day by reflecting upon the tragic events of September 11, 2001, and by committing themselves to service in their local communities.

Designated earlier this year within the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, the National Day of Service and Remembrance is part of the larger United We Serve initiative, which invites Americans to participate in the nation's recovery and renewal efforts by volunteering with local nonprofit agencies and other service organizations.

To learn more about this day of observance or to find volunteer opportunities in your area, visit the September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance web site or go to www.Serve.gov.

Stephen Sherman, Reference Librarian, Foundation Center-Atlanta

Obama Administration Launches Serve.gov

Last month, President Obama announced United We Serve, a nationwide service initiative meant to help meet the growing social needs of the nation. This initiative is intended not only to expand the base of volunteers for existing organizations but also to encourage individual citizens to develop their own service projects in conjunction with friends, family, and other members of the community.

United We Serve will include an initial 81 days of service, from June 22 to September 11, which will be commemorated as a National Day of Service and Remembrance. To help facilitate this service initiative, the administration has a created a new web site, Serve.gov, to function as a comprehensive clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities in the U.S. Managed by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Serve.gov gives individual citizens the ability to find local service opportunities by keyword or location or to start their own projects using the helpful toolkits provided at the site.

Organizations seeking volunteers can also register their projects and sign up volunteers using the site.

Looking for more resources to help in creating or managing a volunteer program? The following organizations and web sites offer information and/or assistance for nonprofits using volunteers:

- VolunteerMatch
- Corporation for National & Community Service
- Idealist.org
- Hands On Atlanta

For more books, articles, and other resources related to volunteering and volunteer management, try searching the Catalog of Nonprofit Literature (CNL), the Center's bibliographic database, for the subjects "Voluntarism" or "Voluntarism--management". A listing of recommended resources can also be found in our resource list on voluntarism.

Stephen Sherman, Reference Librarian, Foundation Center-Atlanta

President-Elect Obama and the Nonprofit Sector

The outcome of the recent presidential election certainly was historic and memorable, or as our big-sister blog, PhilanTopic, simply said, "Wow!" 

If you are wondering what a change in administration might mean for the nonprofit sector, the Chronicle of Philanthropy recently provided a helpful summary about what an Obama Administration would mean for the sector.

Some of his pledges of sector support include plans to create a Social Entrepreneurship Agency, with a mission to improve coordination of federal programs that support nonprofit groups, foster nonprofit accountability, streamline processes for getting federal grants and contracts, and remove barriers that prevent small groups from participating in government programs.

He has also pledged to create a Social Investment Fund Network, to distribute government and private money to charities working on innovative projects that focus on issues identified as top priorities by cities. Read more on Obama's positions on the sector in the link above.

In a Nov. 13 article in The Chronicle, Ian Wilhelm interviewed numerous charity officials and experts, asking  them what the new president can do to strengthen philanthropy, fundraising, and volunteerism during his administration. You can read this article in our library (or if you're a Chronicle of Philanthropy subscriber, you can view it online).

What would you suggest to the new president? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Pattie Johnson, Director, Foundation Center – Atlanta