FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 19, 2016
CONTACT: Debbie.Schuffenhauer@ofm.wa.gov, 360-902-0669

OLYMPIA, WA – Serve Washington will host hundreds of local AmeriCorps members to celebrate a major milestone for the national service program that started in 1994: surpassing 1 million AmeriCorps members.

With Veterans Day approaching, Serve Washington will dedicate time during the celebration to honor veterans who are serving again through civilian service as AmeriCorps members. Gary Condra, deputy director of the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs, will present a commemorative pin to attending veterans to thank them for their service to country and community.

The event takes place Friday, Oct. 21 at the Seattle Center Fisher Pavilion.

Similar swearing-in ceremonies are happening across the country this fall as more than 75,000 individuals join the program.

Bill Basl, director of AmeriCorps for the Corporation for National and Community Service, will return to his home state to swear in the newest class of AmeriCorps members who will serve in communities across Washington. Other speakers are Eric Liu, CNCS board member and founder/CEO of Citizen University, and Kevin D. Ward, assistant professor at Seattle University and AmeriCorps alumnus of the National Civilian Community Corps program.

In conjunction with the celebration, an estimated 100 AmeriCorps members will work on an environmental restoration project at David Rogers Park on Queen Anne Hill, sponsored by EarthCorps and the Green Seattle Partnership.

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Serve Washington advances national service, volunteerism and civic engagement to improve lives; expands opportunity to meet the local critical needs of residents of Washington; and strengthens community capacity while creating healthy and resilient communities. For more information, visit servewashington.wa.gov.

AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President's national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit www.NationalService.gov.

This year, CNCS committed more than $35.9 million to support Washington communities through national service initiatives. Through a unique public-private partnership, this federal investment will leverage an additional $22.3 million in other resources to strengthen community impact, build local support and increase return on taxpayer dollars.

Friday, Oct. 21, 2016

Local contact:
Debbie Schuffenhauer
Executive director, Serve Washington
Phone: 360-902-0669 or 360-789-0811

Media interested in attending should email servewa@ofm.wa.gov with WA Swearing-In Ceremony in the subject line.