FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 30, 2003
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Citizen Corps
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Remarks For Secretary Tom Ridge |
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Citizen Corps Annual Conference
Willard Intercontinental Hotel
Washington, DC - Thank you for inviting me to join you. I'm delighted to be here
today.
It's an
honor to stand among a group that has so diligently worked to make America's
communities safer - and to make those communities better prepared to combat the
adversaries of our peaceful daily existence.
I want to
thank the leaders of the Local Citizen Corps Councils and the National Citizen
Corps Council members that are here today. I also want to thank the State
Citizen Corps Points of Contact.
The people
of Citizen Corps resolved to engage the willingness of people in every corner of
the country - and that resolve has made a great difference in America's ability
to protect our homeland. Well done!
After the
attacks of September 11, 2001 - selfless individuals all over the country asked,
"What can I do to help? How can I get involved?"
Citizen
Corps answers that question every day by offering people countless ways to serve
their country - whether it be through a neighborhood watch program, by
volunteering at the local police department or by lending critical support to
first responders….all so that professional officers are able to devote more of
their time to frontline duty.
As
President Bush has said, "If you want to join us, if you want to make the
country stronger, participate; help somebody in need." Thousands of Americans
are heeding his call - and because of it, America's communities are safer,
stronger and better prepared to respond to threats of terrorism, to crime, and
to other emergencies and disasters.
To be
sure, you have seen a year of incredible accomplishments.
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At this time last year, there were 100
Local Citizen Corps Councils. Today, there are 700 active Local Citizen Corps
Councils, all making the most of community strengths to implement the Citizen
Corps programs;
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And in one year, Citizen Corps has gone from 10 state and territory
councils…to 50;
What's
more, the life-saving programs that these Councils work to coordinate are
flourishing.
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The Volunteers in Police Service program
has made incredible strides. At this time last year, approximately 70 police
departments were participating. Today, more than 600 registered VIPS programs
(Volunteers In Police Service) aid our police officers in towns all across the
country;
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13,000 registered Neighborhood Watch Groups
stand guard over America's families;
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In 42 communities, the Medical Reserve
Corps has taken shape to coordinate the skills of health care professionals so
that even more caring individuals are tending those in need;
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And more than 36 million dollars in grant money has been provided to state and
local governments to start or accelerate CERT Training (Community Emergency
Response Team)…with a 2 year goal of 400,000 trained men and women in
communities across the country.
These
results are incredible - and the fruits of your labor are immediate and
widespread. People who serve as members of the Citizen Corps become an integral
thread in the community fabrics that blanket America.
And
America depends on that fabric, not just in times of national crisis, but during
the everyday challenges of human life. Citizen Corps is an army of caregivers
that march among us - that help to connect the threatened to the defender, as
well as the hurting to the healer.
As you
well know, none of this would be possible without the partnerships that Citizen
Corps enjoys with the Department of Justice (Neighborhood Watch, Volunteers in
Police Service), the Department of Health and Human Services (Medical Reserve
Corps), and your new federal partners, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration [NOAA], the EPA, and the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools
under the Department of Education.
By tapping
the expertise and programs of our Federal family, Citizen Corps is working to
bring these resources to the state and to local communities around the country.
But it's worth noting: Homeland security is not a federal strategy. It's a
national strategy - one in which everyone has a role to play.
In that
spirit, I'd also like to thank the American Red Cross, the Points of Light
Foundation, the International Volunteer Firefighters, the National Volunteer
Fire Council, the International Association of Police Chiefs, the National
Safety Council, as well as others who work with Citizen Corps to educate and
train the volunteers that help support our nation's first responders.
I can't
stress enough how important it is that we reach out to citizens so that everyone
is prepared for whatever emergency may come America's way.
But that
can only happen if we can get all sectors of the population working toward this
goal - that means federal, state and local authorities; businesses; schools;
communities...and especially individual citizens.
As leaders
of the Citizen Corps, you've taken up the responsibility of harnessing the great
power of the American spirit - and channeling it into volunteer service. That
service translates into a better prepared nation - one where you're helping us
to reach one individual, one family, one neighborhood, one community at a time.
For our
part, the Department of Homeland Security is working hard to supply the public
with the best information possible - to help them prepare well before an
emergency occurs with our Ready Campaign.
The
American people are avidly seeking ways to better prepare themselves and their
loved ones, and Citizen Corps is an important vehicle for that information.
I
encourage you to work to deliver the Ready message at the grassroots level so
that preparedness information is put into the hands of each individual.
All of
this - the creation of Citizen Corps, the implementation of the Ready Campaign -
it's not just a response to terrorism. We believe it's a deterrent. Americans do
not live in fear. We instead stand alert and prepared. And that's a terrorist's
greatest fear.
Also, it's
important to note that taking charge of your own safety, that of your family's,
that of your employees and your businesses -- it doesn't mean that you're
charging into a fight alone.
The
Department of Homeland Security stands with you. We've made great progress as a
Department during our first six months. As a result, we can say that America is
far safer, more secure and better prepared than it was nearly two years ago.
We're
safer and better prepared because every day we collect more intelligence, share
more information, inspect more passengers and containers, guard more borders and
coastline, and better equip and train our "first responders" through funding -
more than $4 billion to date. And we're safer because, every day, with your
help, we empower more citizens and more families to take steps to ensure their
own protection.
We have
made great progress to secure our nation, our way of life and our freedoms from
terrorism.
And yet,
the best way to deter terrorism, of course, is to go after terrorist networks
where they live and operate.
And we
should all be proud of our men and women in uniform who have served that cause -
and their country - so well.
These
successes have turned what was once a late-night knock on the door by militant
Iraqi soldiers - into a knock of opportunity - and freedom - and hope for a
better life for the Iraqi people.
What's
more, these military successes have significantly improved our national
security, and that goes hand in hand with homeland security.
So let me
close by saying: Thank you for your dedication, thank you for your perseverance
- and most of all, thank you for the example you set for others who are
following your lead. The work of the Citizen Corps is vital to the protection of
our country…and we are tremendously grateful for it.
Again,
thank you for your kind invitation. It's been a privilege to be with you today…
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