Service is the solution we need to move Michigan forward.
We all know what is holding Michigan back: a high unemployment rate, a low graduation rate, and a terrible economy. We hear that every day.
But do we know Michigan’s assets?
More young people volunteer today then any previous generation. Every day people are retiring and entering second careers in service.
These people are Michigan’s assets. They are the creativity of Motown, the innovation of the assembly line, and the social consciousness of the six hour work week.
Michigan needs Michiganders. In service we rediscover our power and reinvest in our community. We rethink our future.”
This speech was produced during the Communicators Institute held in Mt. Pleasant on December 10. The Institute allowed some of the staff at the Michigan Community Service Commission to think about our message. What should people take away from our efforts?
Empowerment.
John F. Kennedy, who started the VISTA program I serve with, famously said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” Service has always been about empowering people to change their community. It is about realizing you are the change maker in your community. With service you are the one who helps your neighbor instead of expecting someone else to come along.
The message at the MCSC is a call to action. It is also a call for the discovery of Michigan. The realization we have so many assets to help us get out of this rut and all of those assets lie in you, in the people of Michigan. To steal from Kennedy… it is not what your country can do for us but the realization that you are the country. You are Michigan. We are Michigan’s future, we the people.
It is time for us to think about service as more than just volunteering. It is about building a healthy community, a healthy state. It is about realizing there are more assets in our community then threats. It is realizing we already possess the tools to build a brighter future. For us at the Michigan Community Service Commission it means realizing all Michigan needs is Michiganders.
We’re accepting recruits. Visit www.michigan.gov/volunteer today!
Strong work. I was just taking a break from saving the world at my VISTA position to read this motivational message. Everyone should do service.
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