The following post was originally published on the AmeriCorps Alums Blog on Dec. 19, 2012. Jeffrey D. Richardson is the executive director of Serve DC.

I am Jeffrey D. Richardson, MSW. I am proud to be a social worker, super proud to be an AmeriCorps Alum, and honored to be stepping in the role as Executive Director of Serve DC – The Mayor's Office on Volunteerism and the District of Columbia Commission on National and Community Service.

My AmeriCorps service experience began in Windsor, NH, at Wediko Children's Services' Summer Fresh Air Experience Program; focused on at-riskchildren whose emotional and behavioral symptoms interfere with their ability tofunction in school, at home, or within the community.

I must be honest to say that when I first signed up to come work at Wediko, I had no idea what all I was getting into. I had participated in service-learning academic programs my junior and senior years at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Through those experiences I spent a lot of time volunteering and eventually working at a youth residential housing program for young people who were involved with the juvenile justice or child-welfare systems; and was looking for an opportunity to work more directly with this population in a supportive environment that was both developmental for the youth and me as an aspiring youth worker.

It was a mentor I worked with at UNC who pushed me to find a program that was going to support me in my goals around youth related work. After lots of searching and phone calls, I discovered Wediko Children's Services, submitted an application, and found myself on a plane to Boston, MA, for training.The rest is history.

This experience shaped my life in so many ways that nearly 12 years later I find myself reflecting back to realize new lessons and “a-ha” moments. The biggest a-ha came when I arrived and was assigned to manage a program and cabin house for 15 young men age 14 to 17 that predominantly had never been outside New Hampshire or Northern Massachusetts and whom had experienced very little interaction with someone like me -- an African American kid who had only known a bit of inner city Cleveland, OH, and suburban North Carolina.

I just knew I had made a bad decision and was going to find myself unable to impact change in their lives. But through relationship building and the coaching from senior staff, I ended that experience so connected to those young men that they were begging me to stay. I never thought that I would have found myself having the skills and leadership to facilitate that kind of impact on someone, but with the support from the program I did.

My AmeriCorps experience wasn't like many today, where I was branded with the identity as a Corps member during my service. However, through the leadership and guidance of the AmeriCorps-supported program, I was able to step forward skilled and confident in my ability to create change and strengthen my community. I didn't have a clear vision of how that was possible before my experience at Wediko, yet I left ready and equipped to serve.

That desire to serve is what brought me to the District of Columbia and is what has led me to my new role as executive director of Serve DC.

I recognize even more now, the impact that service and volunteerism can have on individuals and communities. I know that not only can service and volunteerism fill transactional needs in the District of Columbia, but in a city with continuing shifting demographics and competing needs, service and volunteerism can build communities. It can unite people across geographic and identity barriers. It can empower and inspire all residents to do their part in making Washington, DC, a world-class city for all.

I am looking forward to utilizing this role to strengthen connections between Alums and current AmeriCorps members to help ignite a wave of service and volunteerism in the District of Columbia. I hope that through this platform at Serve DC, we can tell more stories of the impact of service and volunteerism; and highlight the story that Alums are equipped and ready to lead across sectors.

I especially invite Alums to seek out opportunities to serve and lead within government. I know government bureaucracy can appear scary and often not service and impact focused. However, government service can present the opportunity to make lasting change for individuals and communities in real and meaningful ways. This is especially true for local government.If you want to use your talents, skills, and abilities to create change that you can see realized, local government is a great place to serve.

I am looking forward to this next phase of living out a lifetime of service, and hope to one day, many years from now, look back and say that I did indeed live a life that allowed me to seek out opportunities to leverage all that I have been blessed with to be fully present in my community. For me, that will be a life time of service.

And I will be able to say that my continuing AmeriCorps experience gave me that lens on life.

AmeriCorps Alums is the only national network convening the alumni of all AmeriCorps national service programs. Register today and read more stories of life after AmeriCorps at http://blog.americorpsalums.org/

The annual Veterans Day observance holds special meaning for veterans and military families across the Nation and around the world. It also has deep significance for Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA). We work closely with the Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force and have a long and special partnership with the National Guard Bureau, which has a counterdrug mission. We honor the service of all active-duty military and veterans and salute their dedication and commitment.
 

We would like to introduce you to Percy Thomas and Dorothy Campbell, two amazing volunteers in our Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) whose service was profiled on Friday’s edition of the NBC Nightly News.
 

Alison's daily struggles while raising two young children made her dream of a college degree seem unobtainable. But things began to turn around when the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) in Washington, DC connected her with a Promotor.
 

Today, to celebrate AmeriCorps Week, I served with a group of volunteers – including five enthusiastic AmeriCorps members – at a Habitat for Humanity build site in Washington, DC.
 

African American History Month has ended, and while the official celebration is over, our contributions to society don't end on any given particular day. Likewise, our African American service members continue to contribute and make history, even after they take off their uniforms for the last time.
 

Today, a group of young men and women, many of them veterans, will stand up and pledge to “get things done for America”. They will join a legion of more than 750,000 Americans who have served in AmeriCorps and become the first class to also serve as VetCorps members.
 

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.
 

On December 20th, Corporation for National and Community Service CEO Robert Velasco, II, and Director of AmeriCorps John Gomperts joined volunteers at DC Central Kitchen. They helped prepare fresh produce that would later be added to delicious meals for area hungry. Each year, more than 14,000 volunteers work side by side with the men and women of the Culinary Job Training program, preparing more than 4500 meals, 365 days a year.
 

Jennifer Byerly, 47, of Rockport, Indiana weathered the trials and tribulations of life, but has made the most of her circumstances through her service with AmeriCorps. She has also become a champion for those with intellectual disabilities.
 

As one of the coordinators of the White House Mentorship Program I was moved by HandsOn Greater DC Cares' new initiative to encourage for-profit corporations to provide mentoring opportunities for under-served youth in the Greater D.C. Community. The organization demonstrates the importance of bringing public and private sectors to together to better serve our communities.
 

Supporting our nation's troops, veterans, and military families is critical to our national security and to strengthening our communities. It is also a top priority for of Corporation for National and Community Service, stemming from the bipartisan Serve America Act.
 

This belief is the bedrock of A Billion + Change, a game-changing initiative that gives nonprofits insight into their own management process and programs from some of the best minds corporate America has to offer. On Thursday, the Corporation for National and Community Service joined Senator Mark Warner, as well as representatives from the Points of Light Institute, the Case Foundation and Deloitte to mark a milestone for the program -- $1 billion worth of pledges.
 

There was a time when Sydney Jimason's prospects didn't look bright. She was kicked out of high school, unemployed, and spending time on the streets of DC. But that all changed when she learned about the Latin American Youth Corps YouthBuild program.
 

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.
 

As a native of Long Island, the attacks of September 11th, 2001 hit close to home for Tracy Connelly. Loved ones working in the World Trade Center were missing. Family members responding to the attacks were injured. For 36 hours, she had no idea where her father was. Days after the events, Connelly learned of friends' deaths by passing their memorials in Penn Station.
 

“A volunteer called to alert us about the first plane. We went into the classroom, which had the only TV and turned it to a local news channel. After adjusting the rabbit ears on top, we all witnessed the second plane hit just a few moments later. I think we all had the same reaction and that was pure terror."
 

In the wake of chaos and tragedy following the September 11th tragedy, AmeriCorps members from the National Preparedness and Response Corps of the Atlanta Red Cross were deployed to Ground Zero. Among those who served was then-70-year-old Donald Trantow.
 

A few weeks ago, a brand new AmeriCorps program, FoodCorps, brought together 50 newly-minted members for a week long training. While there, several of the members shared what inspired them to join a program designed to addressing our country's childhood obesity epidemic through school gardens and farm-to-school programs
 

USDA data shows that only 2% of kids eat enough fruits and vegetables and 1 in 4 young adults are too overweight to qualify for military service. Statistics like these don't exactly paint a hopeful picture for the future. But a new national service organization, FoodCorps, has set out to change that.
 

Superwoman. That should be RSVP volunteer Evelyn Hildebrand's new name. If you're ever able to catch up with her,she's probably volunteering.
 

A few weeks ago, the Corporation for National and Community Service joined First Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Members of Congress and their spouses for a day filled with strenuous and physically hard, yet rewarding work.
 

On Wednesday, the Corporation for National and Community Service joined First Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Members of Congress and their spouses, along with AmeriCorps members and over 150 volunteers for the annual Congressional Day of Service event at a KaBOOM! event.
 

For several years now, volunteers from the Department of Transportation have observed the Martin Luther King holiday with "a day on, not a day off." And yesterday, many from DOT did so once again by working on a terrific beautification project at Ballou High School here in Washington, DC.