MEDIA ALERT: On Veterans Day First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, ServiceNation Will Launch “Mission Serve”

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There is no more powerful reminder of the enormous stresses and sacrifices of military service than the horrific and tragic events at Fort Hood. BTC and ServiceNation join the President and our nation in mourning those who lost their lives.

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Veterans Day has always been a powerful way to honor the service of those in uniform. And next Wednesday, November 11, ServiceNation, with the help of First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden, will unveil "Mission Serve: Forging A Continuum Of Service," a new initiative to unite the worlds of military and civilian service, tapping the energy, wisdom and experience of the millions of citizens—in uniform and out—who are dedicated to strengthening America. Mission Serve will have two main objectives:

1. Engaging civilians and active and retired military personnel in service to meet the many critical needs of our nation and, in particular, the needs of the military community (service members, veterans, and their families).
2. Better integrating our nation’s military community into service alongside the civilian community.

It's a powerful vision, and at a blowout day of testimonials and service at George Washington University's Lisner Auditorium in Washington, DC, Mission Serve will be launched with a network of 36 initiatives that partner civilian and military service organizations. Joining the First Lady and Dr. Biden will be MTV's Sway Calloway (who will emcee the event), Acting CEO of the Corporation For National And Community Service Nicola Goren, and Alma Powell, chair of America's Promise, who will be presented with the first-ever ServiceNation Award for Excellence in Military and Civilian Service.

Here's the full media advisory:

***MEDIA ALERT FOR 11/11/09***

MICHELLE OBAMA AND JILL BIDEN JOIN SERVICENATION ON VETERANS DAY TO LAUNCH MISSION SERVE: FORGING A CONTINUUM OF SERVICE

First-ever ServiceNation Award for Excellence in Civilian and Military Service to be presented to Alma J. Powell; MTV’s Sway Calloway to emcee

Student Veterans of America, Blue Star Families, military and civilian service leaders celebrate uniting of service organizations in strengthening our nation

When: Wednesday, November 11, 2009
12 noon – 3:30 p.m. ET

Where: George Washington University
Marvin Center and Lisner Auditorium
21st and H Streets, NW
Washington, DC 20052

Who: Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States
Dr. Jill Biden, Second Lady of the United States
Alma J. Powell, chair of America’s Promise Alliance
Sway Calloway, MTV News Correspondent
Nicola Goren, Acting CEO, Corporation for National and Community Service

“The Telling Project,” a 22-minute performance by college students and recent graduates, including five veterans and one military spouse, who will tell their own stories of service

What: In honor of Veterans Day, ServiceNation will inaugurate MISSION SERVE: Forging a Continuum of Service, a network of 36 initiatives partnering civilian and military service organizations to meet the critical needs of our nation, troops, military families, and veterans. Bank of America is a proud program partner of MISSION SERVE. Event details include:

Ceremony (Lisner Auditorium, 2 p.m.):

• Remarks by First Lady Michelle Obama on the importance of both civilian and military service in strengthening our communities and advancing our nation.
• Remarks by Dr. Jill Biden on the importance of offering thanks and service to veterans, military service members, and their families.
• Presentation of the first annual ServiceNation Award for Excellence in Military and Civilian Service to Alma Powell for a lifetime of service to our children, communities and our country.
• Release of the report, “All Volunteer Force: From Military to Civilian Service”, the first-ever nationally representative survey of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom veterans.
• The report finds that for this new generation of 1.8 million veterans, continued service is likely to help smooth the transitions home. The report was written by Civic Enterprises and underwritten by Target and the Case Foundation.
• Unveiling of 36 civilian-military organization initiatives under the ServiceNation umbrella

Care Package Assembly for Military Families (Marvin Center, 12 noon):
In partnership with the military family organization Blue Star Families, event participants and George Washington University students will create more than 500 “Thx Box” care packages for families of active-duty military, sponsored by the forthcoming PBS documentary “This Emotional Life” and Target.

Performance of “The Telling Project” (Lisner Auditorium, 3 p.m.):
“The Telling Project” is an acclaimed veteran and civilian collaboration that uses the medium of theater to open up communication between veterans and their communities. In this 22-minute performance, six college students and recent graduates, including five veterans and one military spouse, will tell their own dramatic stories of service.

About MISSION SERVE: Forging a Continuum of Service will activate people engaged in volunteer and military service across America to more closely coordinate our civilian service and military communities, enabling each to strengthen the other and, ultimately, to strengthen our nation. The initiative partners the ServiceNation coalition’s community service organizations with veterans groups, military family groups, and active-duty and reserve components of each military branch. These partnerships will more closely integrate service to country with service to community, and will help grow the service movement that is critical to America's future success. Bank of America is proud to support MISSION SERVE as a means of enhancing service opportunities for military and civilians.

Contact: Elizabeth Wilner, ServiceNation, 202-236-3671, ewilner@bethechangeinc.org

Kelly Whitley, 202-585-2037, kwhitley@powelltate.com

ServiceNation is a national campaign to increase service opportunities and elevate service as a core ideal and problem-solving strategy in American society. Reaching an estimated 100 million citizens through its 250 member groups, ServiceNation played a leading role in the drafting and April 2009 enactment of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which authorizes the greatest expansion of national service in America since FDR created the Civilian Conservation Corps. Now that the Act has passed, the ServiceNation coalition is working to inspire a powerful culture of volunteerism in our country. We envision an America in which a commonly asked question is, “Where do you serve?” For more information, visit www.servicenation.org.