On December 9, Claude Allen, Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, spoke at the National Disability Inclusion and National Service Conference. At the conclusion of his remarks, Allen honored outstanding volunteer Emmanuel Jenkins with the President's Volunteer Service Award.

Jenkins, who suffers from Cerebral Palsy,has volunteered for nearlyten years and recently graduated from his second term as an AmeriCorps member. His primary reason for participation in AmeriCorps was to help people. Emmanuel, now 21,started volunteering with children when he was only 11 years old. He ran a computer lab for the Boys and Girls Club as well as a program called Ticket to the Future, which taught students how to set and attain life goals. As a junior staff member, he assisted with a program called Family Day and tutored children in math. E mmanuel talks about the importance of encouraging students and always tells them, “You can do that because a winner never stops trying.”

Emmanuel currently lives in Dover, Delaware and volunteers with his local school district mentoring a local at-risk youth. His motivation stems from a public service announcement he saw on TV that said, “You can be part of the problem or part of the solution."He strives to be part of the solution. Emmanuel is also a certified motivation speaker and his message is to challenge others with the quote, “When you give, you get!”

The President's Volunteer Service Award was created at the President’s direction by the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation. The Award is available to youth ages 14 and under who have completed 50 or more hours of volunteer service; to individuals 15 and older who have completed 100 or more hours; and to families or groups who have completed 200 or more hours. For more information about the Award, please visit http://www.presidentialserviceawards.gov.

The 2005 National Conference on Disability Inclusion and National Service provided a forum for the national service and disability communities to come together and identify, develop, and share, new innovations that ensure a meaningful opportunity for all Americans to engage in volunteer service. The conference, sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Servicebrought together some 350 leaders from the disability and national service communities across the country to develop strategies for engaging more people with disabilities in volunteering and service.More information about the conferencecan be found at http://www.serviceandinclusion.org.