President George W. Bush will meet Amy Poklar when he arrives in Cleveland, Ohio, on Thursday, October 28, 2004. Poklar, 17, created a shoe drive for the people of Afghanistan and collected 850 pairs of shoes for children and adults.

President Bush has called on all Americans to volunteer two years or 4,000 hours over the course of their lifetimes, and hecreated USA Freedom Corpsto help foster a culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility. Since March 2002, President Bush has met with more than 350 individuals around the country, like Poklar, who are answering the call to volunteer service.

Poklar first considered the idea for a shoe drive when her cousin, Army Major Timothy Owen, who was deployed to Afghanistan, e-mailed Poklar that the troops were playing baseball with Afghan children who didn’t have any shoes. In November 2003, Poklar set up donation boxes at local businesses and collected new and gently worn shoes. Poklar sorted and cleaned the shoes, packed up 50 boxes and mailed them to Afghanistan for her cousin to distribute. She paid for the postage with a donation from her parents and with money she earned as a waitress.

Through USA Freedom Corps, President Bush wants to help every American answer the Call to Service by strengthening and expanding service opportunities to protect our homeland, support our communities, and extend American compassion around the world. Interested volunteers can find information at www.usafreedomcorps.gov or by calling 1-877-USA-CORPS.

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