January 2001 - The Art of Community Change

CVC Annual Meeting Keynote Speaker Bob Goodwin (CEO, Points of Light Foundation)

We are enthused about bringing the National Community Service Conference to the Twin Cities. There is such a rich tradition of service and volunteerism in this community; it is altogether fitting that this seminal event in the nonprofit sector be held here. We are also delighted that the Corporate Volunteer Council -- Twin Cities is the charter member of the Points of Light Foundation.

There is a fresh wind blowing in the country. There is great consensus about the power of volunteer service to help solve some of our communities' most intractable social problems. We are encouraged that corporate leaders, elected officials of all parties, as well as leaders of the nonprofit sector all are growing in their appreciation of the power of service to build community.

This is a critical time in American history---a time when we will decide whether we can build a shared future or will continue the fragmentation of our communities; a time that demands that organizations `step up' as transformational leaders to call all Americans to a new level of engagement with one another.

There is deep within the American psyche, the abiding belief in the inherent dignity of human life. And that each of us---all of us---by actions that are overt or covert---do build up or tear away at the most fundamental of human needs---to find value and meaning through community.

We believe that disconnection or people living in isolation from one another is at the root of our most serious social problems. Volunteering has been proven to be a most effective strategy for bridging the chasms which divide. The principle reason service is such a powerful strategy is because through the connections that are built and nurtured through service, people who may be on the `outside looking in' can realize they have value as human beings. We know from the work done by researchers and academicians that `mattering' is a motive: the feeling that others depend on us, are interested in us, are concerned with our fate, or experience us as an ego-extension exercises a powerful influence on our actions.

The most elementary form of mattering is the feeling that one commands the interest or notice of another person.

Our service counts because through it, we let people know that they matter and that's the first step in integrating them more fully into the life of the community.

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