Residents Honor 9/11 Day with American Tradition of Service

Dozens of Little Rock residents will join in patriotic acts of service to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks during the September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance. Volunteers will be doing beautification projects and visiting with veterans, joining hundreds of thousands of citizens across the country in this American tradition.

Volunteers will arrive at the VA in North Little Rock at 9:00 a.m. on September 11th.  Our House and the Central Arkansas Library System Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) members will hold a moment of silence at 9:05 a.m. Our House will coordinate volunteers to garden, paint, and visit with veterans from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Central Arkansas Library System VISTA members are coordinating a trail repair and clean-up of Allsopp Park from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

“We are a proud host to VISTA and AmeriCorps service members who every day contribute tremendous heart, hard work, and initiative in support of our mission to build a pathway out of homelessness,” said Ben Goodwin, Executive Director of Our House. “We are grateful for the chance to partner with CALS for the 9/11 Day of Service to connect this amazing spirit of service with a range of important projects in the community.”

CALS Executive Director Nate Coulter stated, “This joint celebration with Our House honors our veterans and improves their surroundings while also ensuring the accessibility and beauty of our natural public spaces. It is an excellent way for CALS and Our House to highlight our abiding focus on serving people. We look forward to commemorating this national day of remembrance with our VISTA members and volunteers, and honoring their spirit of gratitude and generosity.”

September 11th was designated a National Day of Service by Congress in 2009 and is led by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through its AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs and is responsible for the nation’s volunteering and service efforts. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.

CNCS partners with 911Day.org and hundreds of business, nonprofit groups, faith-based organizations, and schools nationwide.

This year, thousands of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds in both rural and urban communities are expected to join their neighbors in delivering meals, repairing homes of veterans and military families, refurbishing schools and community centers, preparing care boxes for the military and first responders, collecting food and clothing, signing up as mentors, reading to children, and more.


###


The Central Arkansas Library System includes 14 branch libraries located in Little Rock, Perryville, and throughout Pulaski County. CALS has the largest research collection in central Arkansas. Most of its more than one million items may be reserved online and picked up at any branch that is convenient to the patron. Library Square, the library system’s downtown Little Rock campus, includes the Main Library, as well as the Ron Robinson Theater, the Bobby L. Roberts Library of Arkansas History & Art, and the Bookstore at Library Square.

Our House is a 501c3 nonprofit organization with a 32-year track record of lifting central Arkansas families and individuals out of homelessness. Our House serves more than 2,000 people each year and engages with more than 500 clients each day. Each day, 110 people live at Our House, 70 pre-school children attend Our House’s quality-rated early childhood education center, 90 school-age children attend Our House’s out-of-school-time program, on average, 59 adults attend Career Center programs daily and 180 families are engaged with our homelessness prevention program. All programs are located on a single seven-acre campus in south Little Rock. Our House has a mission of empowering homeless and near-homeless families and individuals to succeed in the workforce, in school, and in life through hard work, wise decision-making, and active participation in the community.