CLINTON CALLS VOLUNTEERS TO A SUMMIT.Byline: Steve Goldstein Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire Mustering an elaborate display of bipartisan star power, President Clinton announced plans Friday for a summit on volunteerism ``to mobilize America's citizen power in a united effort to solve our common problems, especially those that threaten our young people.'' Flanked by former President Bush, the man he defeated to gain the White House, Clinton said: ``Citizen service belongs to no party, no ideology. It is an American idea which every American should embrace.'' Underscoring the theme of bipartisanship that Clinton has stressed in the early days of his second term, he was backed by former Joint Chief of Staff Chairman Colin Powell Noun 1. Colin Powell - United States general who was the first African American to serve as chief of staff; later served as Secretary of State under President George W. Bush (born 1937) Colin luther Powell, Powell , who had flirted with a bid to run against Clinton. The summit will be held April 27-29 for 2,000 representatives from 100 U.S. cities. They will gather in Philadelphia to ``re-energize ideals that were born in that city more than two centuries ago,'' said Vice President Al Gore Noun 1. Al Gore - Vice President of the United States under Bill Clinton (born in 1948) Albert Gore Jr., Gore . The call for the summit demonstrates Clinton's acknowledgment that private efforts are needed in a time of tight government resources. What will distinguish the event from a three-day seminar is the effort to obtain strict commitments from major corporations and nonprofit organizations to provide goods and services In economics, economic output is divided into physical goods and intangible services. Consumption of goods and services is assumed to produce utility (unless the "good" is a "bad"). It is often used when referring to a Goods and Services Tax. to needy communities and to expand various philanthropic endeavors. Among the commitments already obtained are: Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America, headquartered in Philadelphia, has committed to double its mentoring relationships, reaching 200,000 matches by 2001. LensCrafters will provide 1 million needy people, especially children, with vision care by 2003. Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. has committed to immunize im·mu·nize v. 1. To render immune. 2. To produce immunity in, as by inoculation. im 1 million children by 2003. The Greek Orthodox Church Greek Orthodox Church Independent Eastern Orthodox church of Greece. The term is sometimes used erroneously for Eastern Orthodoxy in general. It remained under the patriarch of Constantinople until 1833, when it became independent. in America has pledged to assist one needy child per every 10 families in more than 550 Greek Orthodox churches nationwide. The NFL NFL abbr. National Football League NFL (US) n abbr (= National Football League) → Fußball-Nationalliga Players Association is launching a mentoring program for American Indian American Indian or Native American or Amerindian or indigenous American Any member of the various aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere, with the exception of the Eskimos (Inuit) and the Aleuts. teen-agers in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Noun 1. Johns Hopkins - United States financier and philanthropist who left money to found the university and hospital that bear his name in Baltimore (1795-1873) Hopkins 2. Center for Indian Youth. Planning for the first Presidents' Summit for America's Future lies at the intersection of various interests. The White House wanted a vehicle to carry Clinton's inaugural rhetoric about a ``new spirit of bipartisanship.'' Former Sen. Harris Wofford Harris Llewellyn Wofford (born April 9, 1926) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as a U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania from 1991 to 1995. He was also the fifth president of Bryn Mawr College. , who has been fighting to retain funding for the Clinton administration's AmeriCorps community-service program, wanted to promote volunteerism. The Points of Light Foundation - a community service group that takes its name from Bush's famous call for ``a thousand points of light'' - wanted to expand efforts begun in the Bush administration. Clinton, paying particular tribute to the Points of Light Foundation, said he shared Bush's desire that ordinary Americans doing extraordinary things ``grow by the power of their example into millions of points of light.'' Each successive speaker struck the drum of bipartisanship and common purpose during the elaborate East Room ceremony. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (color) Presidents Bush and Clinton join forces to push volunteerism. Associated Press |
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