Older and Weiser

One of the best parts of my role as chair of the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC) –  the only organization chartered by Congress to encourage Americans to become active and engaged citizens –  is the opportunities I get to thank Americans for their service.

I’ve just spent the last couple of days with two exceptional citizens, Bob Graham and Lou Frey.  Graham, of course, is the former two-term Florida governor and three-term US senator. Frey, who served on active duty in the Navy and retired as a captain in the US Naval Reserve, represented an Orlando-area congressional district for five terms, until his retirement in 1979.  Graham, a Democrat, and Frey, a Republican, co-head the Florida Joint Center for Citizenship and have worked cooperatively for years in the interests of civic engagement in Florida.

They have taken on a tough job.  Florida ranks 46th among the states in its civic health (according to the 2009 Florida Civic Health Index released this week by the Florida Joint Center and NCoC), taking into account rates of voter participation, volunteerism, contributions to charitable organizations and participation in solving community problems.  Even worse, the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area ranks 50th out of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the US in civic participation.

But take it on they do, with all of the passion of two aging Vaudevillians who still know how to capture an audience.  Neither has anything to prove.  At ages that find most Americans with their feet up, these “Sunshine Boys” have taken on the job of rallying Florida’s hodgepodge of immigrants, snowbirds, surfers, clubbers and seniors to take seriously their jobs as citizens.

They are at their best speaking to kids about their roles as citizens.  Their talk to 100 Miami Edison High students is relevant to 16- and 17-year-olds who tune into their message about working together to strengthen their Little Haiti community.  It’s a high compliment to their energy and passion that these kids, and the 75 or so Vista and AmeriCorps volunteers we met on Thursday, want their pictures taken with the Sunshine Boys.

In a state so obviously in need of civic leadership, they are the model and they are not alone.

Thursday, I also had the pleasure of sharing a panel discussion at Miami-Dade College with one Carmine Priore, the Vice Mayor of Wellington, FL who has headed the the Florida League of Cities for the last two years.  Carmine, too, has a passion that’s hard not to admire.

After retiring as a dentist in 1992, he began a second career in public service by being elected to the Acme Improvement Board of Supervisors. Perhaps it is less glamorous than being a US Senator but it was Carmine’s chance to serve. For 17 years, he has focused his energies on making local government work and his fellow Floridians are the better for it.

Like Graham and Frey, Carmine chose not to slip into an easy retirement; quite to the contrary.  Public service IS his retirement.

“Everyone has something to contribute,” Graham is fond of saying.

Imagine how much stronger Florida — indeed America — could be if other seniors and other Floridians followed the lead of Carmine and the Sunshine Boys.

Thank you, gentlemen, for your service.

On Tuesday, Michael’s piece was published in the Miami Herald as “We should do our civic duty.”

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Today, the results of a survey conducted by the Florida Joint Center for Citizenship and the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC) were announced in Miami. It concludes that civic engagement has dropped off markedly during the past two years in Florida, partly due to the financial crisis. The results are similar to the 2009 Civil Health Index released by the NCoC in August. In that study, 66 percent of those who participated said they were responding to the economic crisis by looking out for themselves. Among the leading indicators of civic health, such as voter turnout, involvement in community organizations, and charitable giving, Florida ranks among the lowest in the country.

Michael Weiser, chairman of the NCoC, said: “Florida’s leaders need to focus on such basics as civic education, teaching Florida history and encouraging Floridians to volunteer in their communities. These initiatives cost little but can yield highly leveraged results in terms of the future health of Florida’s citizenship.”

Legislation is pending that may help reverse the trend. Florida Representative Charles McBurney has introduced a bill called the “Justice Sandra Day O’Connor Civics Education Act.” The legislation mandates a social studies section to be included in the state-wide Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT).

The results of the study come at a time when educators are reconsidering their social studies curriculum, with some choosing to jettison their existing programs in exchange for new textbooks which seek to enliven classroom discussion.

Victor Davis Hanson, writing in City Journal not long after the terrorist attack on New York City, said: “Restoring civic education—from the daily practice of its rituals to real mastery of the elements of Americanism—will not be easy, but such a shared sense of values is critical in such a vast nation that is otherwise not defined by a shared religion, common race, or dominant ethnic affiliation.”

Blog Editor,
Robert Peach

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To my fellow American Jews who believe that the pronouncements of South American leaders like Hugo Chavez, Rafael Correa or the Kirchners are just noise, I offer this cautionary tale:

My seatmate the other night on a flight to Miami was headed home after visiting with several sales prospects.

His company is based in Israel and sells an “optimization tool” to major telecom users.  An American Jew, he heads the company’s business in Latin America and is responsible for selling this telecom solution in such places as Monterrey, Caracas, Bogota and Tegucigalpa.

“How’s business,” I ask.

“Not too bad, considering,” he answers.  And, then, there is a pause, as if to consider if the following will be understood for what it is.  “But it’s impossible to sell my product in certain countries.”

“Oh, where?”

“Well, they won’t buy my product in Venezuela or Ecuador and, last week, I was asked by a prospect in Honduras to certify that it was manufactured some place other than in Israel.  I told him: ‘I could do that but I would be lying.’  He said: ‘Then I can’t buy your product.’”

Do take a moment to click on the link below and read a column by Mary Anastasia O’Grady of The Wall Street Journal, called: “Revolutionary Anti-Semitism.” It is chilling.

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Yesterday, the Chicago Tribune printed two op-ed columns concerning the intense debate over health care reform. One of these columns was written by Michael Weiser and the other was written by U.S. Senator Roland Burris of Illinois.

From Michael Weiser:

“For 30 years I owned a small consulting firm headquartered in Chicago (for most of its years in business)  that advised organizations on matters of media and messaging. The Weiser Group, which never employed more than 30 people, provided high-quality health insurance coverage to its employees because I believed it was part of my “social contract” as an employer.” (read more)

From Sen. Burris:

“A public option must be a central component of any health insurance reform legislation. Competition and market alternatives will put real pressure on insurers to rein in profits, stop denying coverage to those who need it.The stakes are too high to settle for anything less.” (read more)

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On Monday evening, Julie and I went to the New York premiere of the feature-length documentary “After the Storm.” The film follows a group of Broadway performers and producers who move to New Orleans in the months after Hurricane Katrina and take on the job of revitalizing the St. Mark’s Community Center. They stage a production of “Once on This Island,” itself the story of a mythical Caribbean isle struck by a hurricane.

The idea was conceived by an actor and writer named James Lecense (pronounced “la scene”) who had the inspiration, assembled the talent and raised the money for the theatrical production. It is a beautiful story and Lecense is a beautiful guy. What is so compelling about this story is that Lecense and his collaborators started with no structure, no organization and no sponsor – only the idea that they could make a difference. Along the way, they help repair the lives of talented young adults who are displaced, dismayed and disoriented in the aftermath of Katrina.

“I just knew I needed to do something,” Lecense says.

As chair of the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC), the only organization chartered by Congress to encourage our civic engagement, I am privileged to hear stories about “ordinary” Americans doing extraordinary things. James Lecense is further proof that any of us can rise up and make a difference in our communities. Still, this story is special. It is one thing – a very fine thing – to write a check to a worthwhile cause. It is something much greater to move beyond our individual comfort zones; to reach across the country and touch people who are different from us and willingly inconvenience ourselves to help them.

The medieval Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides made famous a ladder of tzedakah – a hierarchy of giving – that still teaches about true acts of charity. Lecense’s gift to New Orleans, and to all of us, ranks among the most high.

Here is a link to a film review of “After the Storm” that appeared in the October 5th edition of The New York Times. Do see the film.

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