My testimonial to public service

[democratreformed]

Today, my daughter and I made our way to Little Rock (Arkansas) to participate in General Wesley Clark's day of service. The coordinators had scheduled a clean-up day at the Little Rock Boys and Girls Club. We arrived early and immediately began cleaning windows. As others began to show up, they were given various assignment ranging from mowing to scraping paint off walls. Some of the other things I did included removing air conditioning covers for high-pressure washing, MOPPING the bleachers, and cleaning various areas of the facility.

I wasn't familiar with the Boys and Girls Club before today. I learned that they serve primarily as an after-school facility for students who have nowhere else to go. The facility itself was very impressive. The was a large central game-room with several smaller classrooms situated around it. There was a snack bar complete with tables and chairs. The was a large gymnasium along with an outdoor baseball field. The director explained that there is a school close by and that several children walk from the school to the club when school dismisses. The worker's at the club help students with their homework, act as advocates for high-school students to help ensure proper credits for graduation, and work with students on computers.

At the end of the day, we were both very tired but felt good for having donated our time to such a worthy cause. Oh, yeah, about midway into the morning, Gert Clark showed up to help. She spent her time thoroughly cleaning one of the classrooms. She scrubbed the sink, cleaned out the storage area, and I'm not sure what else as I was busy elsewhere. My daughter worked with her for a little while and said that she is a very gracious lady.

Even though this post is long, I wanted to make a testimonial to General Clark's civilian service plan. I have seen it criticized a bit but I think it is a great idea. Let me tell you another story...

Several years ago, a small town south of here was hit by a tornado. It was devastated. The National Guard was called in. Eventually, my family made its way down to help as volunteers. We took a couple of small cranes and worked hard getting tin and other items out of tree tops. We had one lady come out of her house and thank us because she had been afraid that the metal was going to fall on her house. Everywhere we went in town, we had people telling us how happy they were to see someone working to get the stuff out of the trees. Some said they had been continually asking the city to get but had gotten no response. I'm sure the city was severly overburdened since the town was so severly devastated. Our work that day was truly an uplifting experience.

Can you imagine the response to these types of disasters if local city officials were to be able to go immediately to a list of volunteers and find what was needed? I can imagine a call like this:
"Mr. Herman, as you probably have heard, we have had a tornado hit our town. You are on the civil service list and it says that you have cranes and welders. We could sure use those things if now is a good time for you." Maybe those people wouldn't have had to wait so long for help in the past. We waited a week or so before volunteering to help because we weren't sure what the situation was and we knew the town was blocked off by NG troops.

That's why I feel like the plan that General Clark outlined is a great idea. I have already signed up.