FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, May 21, 2005
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The White House - Office of the Press Secretary
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President Delivers Commencement Address at Calvin College |
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Multimedia |
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The Calvin College Fieldhouse
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2:15 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, President Byker; members of the Calvin faculty;
distinguished guests; parents, friends, family -- and, most importantly, the
Class of 2005. (Applause.)
Thanks for having me. I was excited to come back to Calvin, and I was just
telling Laura the other night about what fun it would be to come to Calvin
College. I said, you know, Laura, I love being around so many young folks. You
know, it gives me a chance to re-live my glory days in academia. (Laughter.) She
said, George, that's not exactly how I would describe your college experience.
(Laughter.) She also said one other thing I think the graduates will appreciate
hearing, a good piece of advice. She said, the folks here are here to get their
diploma, not to hear from an old guy go on too long. (Laughter.) So with that
sage advice, here goes.
I bring a great message of hope and freedom to Calvin College Class of 2005:
There is life after Professor Vanden Bosch and English 101. (Laughter.) Someday
you will appreciate the grammar and verbal skills you learned here. (Laughter
and applause.) And if any of you wonder how far a mastery of the English
language can take you, just look what it did for me. (Laughter and applause.)
I thank the moms and dads here for your sacrifice and for your love.
(Applause.) I want to thank the faculty for your hard work and dedication.
(Applause.) And, again, I congratulate the Class of 2005. Soon you will collect
your degrees and say goodbyes to a school that has been your home -- and you
will take your rightful place in a country that offers you the greatest freedom
and opportunity on Earth. (Applause.) I ask that you use what you've learned to
make your own contributions to the story of American freedom.
The immigrants who founded Calvin College came to America for the freedom to
worship, and they built this great school on the sturdy ground of liberty. They
saw in the American "experiment" the world's best hope for freedom -- and they
weren't the only ones excited by what they saw. In 1835, a young civil servant
and aristocrat from France, named Alexis de Tocqueville, would publish a book
about America that still resonates today.
The book is called "Democracy in America," and in it this young Frenchman
said that the secret to America's success was our talent for bringing people
together for the common good. De Tocqueville wrote that tyrants maintained their
power by "isolating" their citizens -- and that Americans guaranteed their
freedom by their remarkable ability to band together without any direction from
government. The America he described offered the world something it had never
seen before: a working model of a thriving democracy where opportunity was
unbounded, where virtue was strong, and where citizens took responsibility for
their neighbors.
Tocqueville's account is not just the observations of one man -- it is the
story of our founding. It is not just a description of America at a point in
time -- it is an agenda for our time. Our Founders rejected both a radical
individualism that makes no room for others, and the dreary collectivism that
crushes the individual. They gave us instead a society where individual freedom
is anchored in communities. And in this hopeful new century, we have a great
goal: to renew this spirit of community and thereby renew the character and
compassion of our nation.
First, we must understand that the character of our citizens is essential to
society. In a free and compassionate society, the public good depends on private
character. That character is formed and shaped in institutions like family,
faith, and the many civil and -- social and civic organizations, from the Boy
Scouts to the local Rotary Clubs. The future success of our nation depends on
our ability to understand the difference between right and wrong and to have the
strength of character to make the right choices. Government cannot create
character, but it can and should respect and support the institutions that do.
Second, we must understand the importance of keeping power close to the
people. Local people know local problems, they know the names and faces of their
neighbors. The heart and soul of America is in our local communities; it is in
the citizen school boards that determine how our children are educated; it's in
city councils and state legislators that reflect the unique needs and priorities
of the people they serve; it's in the volunteer groups that transform towns and
cities into caring communities and neighborhoods. In the years to come, I hope
that you'll consider joining these associations or serving in government --
because when you come together to serve a cause greater than yourself, you will
energize your communities and help build a more just and compassionate America.
Finally, we must understand that it is by becoming active in our communities
that we move beyond our narrow interests. In today's complex world, there are a
lot of things that pull us apart. We need to support and encourage the
institutions and pursuits that bring us together. And we learn how to come
together by participating in our churches and temples and mosques and
synagogues; in civil rights associations; in our PTAs and Jaycees; in our
gardening and book clubs, interest groups and chambers of commerce; in our
service groups -- from soup kitchens to homeless shelters.
All these organizations promote the spirit of community and help us acquire
the "habits of heart" that are so vital to a free society. And because one of
the deepest values of our country is compassion, we must never turn away from
any citizen who feels isolated from the opportunities of America. Our
faith-based and community groups provide the armies of compassion that help
people who wonder if the American Dream is meant for them. These armies of
compassion are the great engines of social change, they serve individual and
local needs, and they have been found at the front of every great movement in
American history.
The history of forming associations dedicated to serving others is as old as
America, itself. From abolition societies and suffrage movements to immigrant
aid groups and prison reform ministries, America's social entrepreneurs have
often been far ahead of our government in identifying and meeting the needs of
our fellow countrymen. Because they are closer to the people they serve, our
faith-based and community organizations deliver better results than government.
And they have a human touch: When a person in need knocks on the door of a
faith-based or community organization, he or she is welcomed as a brother or a
sister.
No one understood this better than another 19th century visitor to America
whose name is well known to Calvin College: Abraham Kuyper. Kuyper was a
Dutchman who would be elected his nation's prime minister, and he knew all about
the importance of associations because he founded so many of them -- including
two newspapers, a political party, and a university. Kuyper contrasted the
humanizing influence of independent social institutions with the "mechanical
character of government." And in a famous speech right here in Grand Rapids, he
urged Dutch immigrants to resist the temptation to retreat behind their own
walls -- he told them to go out into their adopted America and make a true
difference as true Christian citizens.
Our government is encouraging all Americans to make a difference through our
faith-based and community initiative; we're mobilizing Americans to volunteer
through the USA Freedom Corps. We'll do our part, but, ultimately, service is up
to you. It is your choice to make. As your generation takes its place in the
world, all of you must make this decision: Will you be a spectator, or a
citizen? To make a difference in this world, you must be involved. By serving a
higher calling here or abroad, you'll make your lives richer and build a more
hopeful future for our world.
At Calvin College, you take this call to service to heart. You serve as
"agents of renewal" across the Earth. You volunteer for Big Brothers/Big Sisters
to mentor young people. You work at Bethany Christian Services here in Grand
Rapids, one of the best-known adoption services in America. A former Calvin
student and professor, Vern Ehlers, serves in the halls of Congress. As the
Class of 2005 goes out into the world, I ask you to embrace this tradition of
service and help set an example for all Americans. As Americans we share an
agenda that calls us to action -- a great responsibility to serve and love
others, a responsibility that goes back to the greatest commandment.
This isn't a Democratic idea. This isn't a Republican idea. This is an
American idea. (Applause.) It has sustained our nation's liberty for more than
200 years. The Founders knew that too much government leads to oppression, but
that too little government can leave us helpless and alone. So they built a free
society with many roots in community. And to keep the tree of liberty standing
tall in the century before us, you must nourish those roots.
Today, the Calvin Class of 2005 looks out on an America that continues to be
defined by the promise of our Declaration of Independence. We're still the
nation our Founders imagined, where individual freedom and opportunity is
unbounded, where community is vibrant, where compassion keeps us from resting
until all our citizens take their place at the banquet of freedom and equality.
And with your help, we'll all do our part to transform our great land one person
and one community at a time.
Thank you for having me and may God bless you, and may God continue to bless
our country. (Applause.)
END 2:30 P.M. EDT
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