For the last few weeks, we've been discussing how and why you should serve on the September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance. Now with 9/11 Day just around the corner, it's time to roll up your sleeves, get out there, and serve!

Making time to volunteer for the September 11th Day of Service is a great way to engage with your community while honoring the victims and survivors of 9/11. Service knows no bounds, age, or ability. And you will likely find that most projects in your area will welcome and accommodate any and all who are ready to participate.

Whether you pick up a shovel at a community cleanup, grab a paintbrush at a local school, swing a hammer and make repairs for a neighbor in need, or collect canned goods for a food drive, we hope you will join the thousands of other Americans serving their country for 9/11 Day.

Just remember these three ideas to make your 9/11 Day a productive one:

Connect: Looking for a way to participate in your area? Sign up for a project near you and volunteer alongside the thousands of Americans who are making time to better their communities, and honor the victims and families of 9/11.

Plan: Want to plan your own project? It's never too late! Get started by watching the CNCS online webinar and turn those thoughts into action.

Dedicate: Already connected to a project? Take a moment to dedicate your service on 9/11, and spread the word about why you are serving or for whom you choose to serve.

The September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance arrives in less than a week, but service projects have already begun, and more will take place this weekend and continue through 9/11 Day. If you don't have plans and are looking to serve, we have an overview of how volunteers across the country will pay tribute to and honor the victims and heroes of September 11th across the nation.
 

Today's Wordless Wednesday celebrates National Smile Month with a look at the joy volunteers experience while giving back. With smiles like these, who wouldn't volunteer?
 

Donations from around the country piled up and volunteers turned out in droves in the days and weeks that followed last year's devastating May 22 tornado in Joplin, MO. City officials estimate that Joplin received donated resources and volunteer hours totaling $17.7 million, the largest amount in Missouri's history and the largest amount ever recorded in FEMA's Region VII.
 

Youth aren't waiting for the call to serve --they are ready to make their mark today. This last weekend, young people around the world celebrated Global Youth Service Day in 100 countries on six continents as children, teens, and young adults demonstrated why they are the most service-oriented generations ever.
 

While the economy continues to show signs of improvement, there are still many workers who are facing challenges in connecting to new careers. The Department of Labor has encouraged dislocated workers to pursue education and training to improve their skills and better position them to compete for employment opportunities. Many workers have taken advantage of these opportunities, but it is also important to lay a path forward for those workers who have not enrolled in training and seek other options to build their skills and increase their chances to find employment.
 

I was inspired early in life to try to make a mark on the world. And even though I'm a bit of a natural caretaker -- working as a lifeguard and even helping find jobs for folks suffering from traumatic brain injury -- meetings and organizations just weren't my style.
 

National Volunteer Week, April 15-21, is a chance for Americans to recognize the volunteers within their community. Here on the Serve.gov blog, that's exactly what we hope to do with our posts this week.Today, this Wordless Wednesday features photos of all kinds of volunteers. Do you have a favorite volunteering photo? Share it with us on the Facebook!
 

Good news. A recent LinkedIn survey found that 41 percent of professionals considered volunteer work as much as paid work when evaluating job candidates. Now here’s the bad news: Slightly less than half of the 89 percent who had volunteer experience included it on their resumes. That’s a mistake -- put your volunteer experience to work for you.
 

It's an old saying and a profound truth that it is better to give than to receive. During National Volunteer Week, April 15-21, we celebrate the millions of Americans who volunteer and recognize the extraordinary benefits of service to individuals, communities, and our nation.
 

Having just wrapped up National AmeriCorps Week, another big week for celebrating service is on the horizon: National Volunteer Week. Happening April 15-21, 2012, National Volunteer Week is an opportunity for nonprofit organizations and national service members and alumni to be recognized and celebrated for their efforts. It's also an opportunity of AmeriCorps Alums to tell their story of service, and shine a light on the value of national service in our nation.
 

Last year, 64.3 million Americans gave their time in service. These volunteers spent hours in schools and shelters, hospitals and hotlines, and faith-based and community-groups. They are the everyday heroes who show up day in, day out and make a difference for millions of women and men around the world.
 

Every four years, we're given one extra day, a leap day. That's 24 extra hours to spend however you wish. Why not spend a few of those hours making a difference?
 

Today, President Obama, the First Lady, and Malia Obama volunteered at a local elementary school as part of a national day of service in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King, who devoted his life to helping others, once said that “everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.”
 

Monuments are built to those who change the course of history. It is right and fitting that a memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. now stands in the heart of our nation's Capital. Even as we renew our understanding of Dr. King's legacy by visiting this beautiful monument; we can honor the legacy of Dr. King by following his example, by serving and volunteering in our communities.
 

I am honored to be recognized as a Champion of Change through President Obama's Winning the Future Initiative. I have volunteered with the President at service projects in Washington, DC and along with my colleagues at HandsOn Greater DC Cares and the volunteer community of our region, share his commitment to achieving change through service.
 

Operation Honor Card has successfully collected 14,000,000 pledged hours of service from Americans who want to honor military families and veterans through acts of kindness, big and small, showing appreciation for their sacrifice.
 

Thanksgiving is a time to come together with family and friends to feast in good company. It is the one day a year reserved for expressing gratitude – for family and friends, health and careers, homes and means. But many Americans will not share in such plentiful abundance.
 

Twenty-five years ago, Ferris Bueller skipped school to spend a day of frivolous fun with his friends. He had little regard for authority, responsibility or the rules. We all wanted to be Ferris – slightly cynical, charmingly irreverent, and clever. Ferris – and the movie he starred in – defined a generation – my generation, Generation X.
 

Veterans Day is a time to reflect on the sacrifice that veterans have made for our country and an opportunity to create a more meaningful experience for the veterans in your community. One way you can create a lasting memory of service is to record the story of a veteran in your life and contribute it to the Veterans History Project.
 

Veterans Day is a time to reflect on the tremendous sacrifices that military service members and families have made while protecting our nation.
 

On Veterans Day, November 11, we honor the brave men and women who have selflessly served our country and risked their lives to protect our freedoms. There are many ways to give back to the more than 23 million vets who have sacrificed so much.
 

There are all kinds of emergencies out there that we can prepare for. Take a zombie apocalypse for example. That's right, I said z-o-m-b-i-e a-p-o-c-a-l-y-p-s-e. You may laugh now, but when it happens you'll be happy you read this, and hey, maybe you'll even learn a thing or two about how to prepare for arealemergency.
 

This year, as I reflect on the meaning of Diwali, I also remember the long journey I took to the United States and then to the gates of the White House in my current position as Deputy Chief of Staff at the Corporation for National and Community Service.
 

This week has been a great week for service, and tomorrow is the biggest national day of service of the year; Make A Difference Day!
 

Fifty years ago, President John F. Kennedy inspired a generation by asking Americans what they could do for their country. Today, as many in the baby boomer generation approach retirement age, they are still serving their country, enriching their own lives in the process.
 

Columbus, OH is home to the second-largest Somali population in the U.S. and the number of low-income, aging immigrants with little or no family nearby is growing. Speaking little or no English and no access to transportation, Somali seniors are struggling to continue living independent lives.
 

Today marks the beginning of the second annual Senior Corps Week! This week celebrates the commitment and contribution made by Senior Corps volunteers and recognizes their critical impact on addressing tough challenges across our nation.
 

This past weekend, hundreds of thousands of Americans participated in service projects to pay tribute to the victims and heroes of 9/11. In all 50 states, volunteers turned out to paint and refurbish homes, run food drives, spruce up schools, reclaim neighborhoods, and support and honor veterans, soldiers, military families, and first responders.
 

With the 10th anniversary of September 11, 2001, approaching, memories of the tragic events that occurred that day feel particularly powerful. For most Americans, the anniversary will always be full of history, emotion, and reflection but 10 years later it's become a symbol for the spirit of unity that America demonstrated in the aftermath.