Thoughts on Community Service

Orginally published on the NTV website April 3, 2008

A couple of years ago Oprah had a contest. People were invited to submit an essay and request Oprah's financial assistance for a worthwhile project that provided assistance to their fellowmen. At that time Jesse Alber wrote the following submission on behalf of the Hastings Kiwannis Club. I found it interesting, so I decided to post it here. SA

Oprah's Big Give Submission

We have all heard the worn out old chinese proverb " Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a life time."I have often wondered if I teach a man to fish, what else will he do, will he give others fish, will he teach others to fish or will he just be a fat and happy fish eater for the rest of his life. What if I taught a man not only to fish but to teach others to fish as well by teaching him to fish I may be able to change his life By teaching him to teach others to fish I may be able to touch a hundred lives. America's Greatest Generation, those born between 1910 and 1930, is slowing fading away, the Baby Boomers (1940 - 1960) are reaching retirement, and Generation Xers (1960-1980) are starting to take the leading roles. However, our society is being shaped today by the Millenials (1980-2000) more than any of these other generations. The amazing thing is, they just may be better than we ever dreamed of being. The Millenials represent a return to patriotism and community service that easily rivals that of the Greatest Generation. They are civic minded. They were taught to think in terms of the greater good. They have a high rate of volunteerism. They expect companies to contribute to their communities-and to operate in ways that create a sustainable environment. These kids, now age 8 - 28, are starving for the chance to serve their communities. So, we give them opportunities to sell cookies for cancer or to clean up local parks each spring. But aren't we really just giving them fish? Wouldn't we serve them better if we taught them to fish? What if we set up and supported long term programs to teach them to fish? To teach them how to serve their communities? Even to teach them how to teach other's to serve their communities? Hastings Kiwanis advocates this vision every day by providing opportunities to serve and learn service for every member of our community through Service Leadership Programs. Through these opportunities, youth and young adults become competent, capable, and compassionate leaders who are prepared to go fishing and to give fishing lessons. Kiwanis programs include K-Kids for elementry students, Builder's Clubs for junior high students, Key Club for high school students, Circle K for College students and Aktion Club for adults with disabilities. The goal of these programs is not just to give kids an opportunity to serve, but to create life long service providers who in turn will teach the next generation the value of service.Participation in these clubs has been outstanding. As I said, these kids are starving for the chance to serve their community. Their enthusiasm is so great that the teachers (Kiwanians) sometimes have trouble keeping up with the students. With the right support, I can only imagine how valuable the impact of these kids will be to our communities when they reach their full potential. On behalf of the Hastings Kiwanis Club, I respectfully request the support of NTV and Oprah's Big Give for the training of service leadership to our youth. Your support would enable us to provide more opportunites to experience the rewards of service and to learn from that experience. Your support would enable us to prepare more service leaders for the future and to ensure that the values of service were passed from generation to generation with each generation's capacity to think in terms of the greater good even more profound than the last. The name “Kiwanis” means “we trade” or “we share our talents.” It was coined from an American Indian expression, Nunc Kee-wanis. Please help us share our commitment to service for generations to come.