The Service News Digest is a regular feature on the Serve.gov blog. In this series, we showcase articles that feature national service and Corporation for National and Community Service programs. Take a look at some of the great stories that had people talking recently.

AmeriCorps

Conserving, one step at a time
The Citizens' Voice (Pennsylvania), March 18, 2013
Tiffany Welch, 25, is a member of AmeriCorps, a government civil service program that does work in areas such as education, conservation and housing. She and her colleagues clamp into the breaker box and install a transmitter for a wireless energy display that will allow the resident to monitor her energy use, and more importantly, how much money she is spending. Read more>>

School crisis teams ready to respond
UT San Diego (California), March 25, 2013
Buchheit was one of 11 counselors and psychologists from the county office who went to El Camino High School and Cesar Chavez Middle School on March 14. The team augmented the schools' own counselors and psychologists and volunteers from the Promoting Achievement and Student Success (PASS) AmeriCorps program. Read more>>

Low-income families in mountains get boost from Habitat for Humanity
The Denver Post - Online (Colorado), March 25, 2013
Blue Spruce Habitat for Humanity is branching out to other areas in the mountains. With three houses being erected in Evergreen and three more in the planning stage, the nonprofit also is in the design phase for a house in Idaho Springs. […] Cyndy Cservenyak, an AmeriCorps volunteer, works on outreach and also coordinates volunteers for build days. Read more>>

Minnesota Reading Corps helps her give back to the community
Park Bugle (Minnesota), March 25, 2013
Minnesota Reading Corps is a research-based AmeriCorps program targeted at Minnesota students from age 3 through third grade with the goal of helping ensure all Minnesota children are on track to reading proficiency by the end of third grade. I work one-on-one daily with my students, monitor their progress weekly and have a file full of graphs to show their growth that I can share with their teachers. It's inspiring to see the number of letter sounds or words they can read in a minute increasing each week. Read more>>

AmeriCorps Project Conserve tours Polk County farms
Tryon Daily Bulletin – Online (North Carolina), March 25, 2013
Project Conserve is an AmeriCorps program unique to western North Carolina, and members are placed at host sites that focus on land conservation, water quality, energy conservation, and local food and farmland initiatives. Read more>>

Two serve Macoupin County through AmeriCorps
State Journal-Register - Online (Illinois), March 24, 2013
Alexandria “Alex” Boles, one of two people serving a stint at the Macoupin County Public Health Department as a member of the AmeriCorps service program, has found her duties to be an eye-opener when it comes to working with domestic violence victims. Read more>>

Homeless role-playing event draws attention to Grand Rapids' housing challenges
MLive.com (Michigan), March 21, 2013
Michigan's Campaign to End Homelessness and AmeriCorps are teaming up for a simulation designed to raise awareness of the challenges many people face in obtaining affordable housing. Read more>>

Rebuild Joplin celebrates opening of 59th house
Joplin Globe - Online (Missouri), March 20, 2013
“Once they got out of that immediate crisis mode, they looked at what was the biggest need, and the biggest need was housing,” she said. Rebuild Joplin now operates with a paid staff of eight to 10, and a volunteer staff from AmeriCorps of about 35 to 40, Finnie said. Read more>>

A Place to Power Up: Technology and Teamwork
Edutopia (California), March 19, 2013
Through one of its many partnerships, PowerUP has teamed with the national AmeriCorps VISTA program to provide two staffers for each new center. These individuals work closely with the staff of partnering organizations to ensure that computer-related activities are coordinated with other programs for youth. Read more>>

Build-a-Bed project responds to needs of county children
Tribune Courier - Online (Kentucky), March 18, 2013
Thirty or more Marshall County children will be sleeping in new beds this year, thanks to the Build-a-Bed project. Debbie Proctor, a reading and math interventional teacher at Jonathan Elementary School, is a member of AmeriCorps. She and other AmeriCorps teachers in the county have selected Build-a-Bed as their service project. Read more>>

AmeriCorps NCCC

Raven 5 team swoops in to do good works
The Meadville Tribune (Pennsylvania), March 25, 2013
The Adopt a Roof program is moving slowly but surely after winter storms grounded National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) team Raven 5, expected to complete 15 roofing projects by mid-April. Read more>>

AmeriCorps VISTA

Storm recovery VISTA shares her experiences
The Daily Mountain Eagle - Online (Alabama), March 23, 2013
A month in Walker County wasn't enough for Karen Neupauer. Neupauer, who spoke to the Rotary Club of Jasper this week, is a native of Lancaster, Pa., who is currently assisting with long-term recovery efforts as an AmeriCorps VISTA. Neupauer had a successful career in the construction industry before a slowdown in the economy inspired her to dedicate more time to disaster relief. Read more>>

Senior Corps: RSVP

Help with legal matters readily available
Centre Daily Times (Pennsylvania), March 25, 2013
According to Taylor, the Retired Senior Volunteer Program assists with income tax preparation for low- to middle-income taxpayers. Through the sponsorship of the county commissioners, the RSVP and Penn State, free tax help is available in Centre County. An IRS effort called the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program also offers free tax help to low-to-moderate income individuals/families that generally fall lower than $51,000 combined household income. Read more>>

RSVP celebrates 40th anniversary
The News-Courier - Online (Alabama), March 23, 2013
Dr. Sidney Sandridge, former president of Athens State College wrote the first RSVP grant for Limestone County in 1973. Today, RSVP has 381 active volunteers serving more than 145,000 hours annually working with 55 volunteer stations. Read more>>

Veterans and Military Families

National Guard Kicks Off 'Joining Community Forces'
TheBayNet.com (Maryland), March 24, 2013
The National Guard Bureau recently signed an agreement with the Corporation for National and Community Service to work together to develop and mature a network of support in the three critical areas of employment, wellness, and education. Watson said the CNCS already has dedicated more than 100 members of Volunteers in Service to America to help develop and foster this critical network of support at the local level across the United States. Read more>>

City Year

City Year hopes to improve education in South LA
Intersections South LA (California), March 18, 2013
Over 200,000 South LA residents do not have a high school diploma according to the 2000 census. City Year, a non-profit organization that partners with public schools to help students succeed, hopes to change this. Read more>>

As an Iraq War veteran, I am honored to work at the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). We are home to more than 70,000 AmeriCorps members, whom we are celebrating as part of AmeriCorps Week.
 

Lt. Brandon Williams, part-time soldier and full-time AmeriCorps member, currently serves in Baltimore, MD, with one of Catholic Charities’ member programs, Project SERVE. Each day, Lt. Williams arrives at Our Daily Bread, Catholic Charities’ hot meal center, and teaches new volunteers the significance of feeding those who cannot afford to feed themselves. Equally importantly, he teaches his volunteers to respect each man and woman that comes through the door. The time the hungry spend in the safety and warmth of Our Daily Bread’s walls may be the only time throughout the day they are treated with respect at all.
 

“Where do you find the time?” is a question that could be posed to many parents, but the 2012 Volunteering and Civic Life in America (VCLA) report shows that many in this group are carving space in their busy schedules to help others in their communities. Allison Moore, a military spouse and mother of three young children in Missouri, is a prime example.
 

Around the country, December is welcomed as a month of hope and good cheer. It may be a season for the exchanging of gifts, or for the sharing of time and resources with community members in need. For many, it is also a time to gather together with loved ones to reminisce about cherished memories and create new stories that will be shared in the future. Such stories preserve the legacy of a family, the history of a generation, and perhaps most important of all, the story of a nation.
 

As military deployments became more common for National Guard and Reserve troops, the emotional strain hits children left behind especially hard. Operation: Military Kids (OMK) supports military youth age 5-18 with outreach programs to help them cope with the stresses of being away from their parents serving far from home.
 

The transient nature of military life can make life difficult for students in military families, and many are stationed at Fort Leonard Wood for less than two years or experience parental deployment. They often have challenges with making new friends, fitting into social groups, and connecting with the community.
 

As President Obama said in his proclamation declaring November as Military Family Month, behind each service member "stands a parent, a sibling, a child, a spouse -- proud family members who share the weight of deployment and make profound sacrifices on behalf of our country."
 

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.
 

A day designed around the idea of “thanks” is a natural for those who want to give back. And as Americans have opened their hearts and wallets to disasters like the Hurricane Sandy relief and recovery efforts, there are many other ways to show thanks by helping those in need this holiday season.
 

On Veterans Day, thousands of veterans around the country will spend their time doing what they know how to do best: serve others selflessly.
 

My name is Rebecca Lange and I am a proud alumna of the second class of AmeriCorps NCCC. I served at the Central Region campus in Denver, CO, from 1995-1996, a wide-eyed high school graduate looking for an adventure, a unique way to serve, and beyond excited to begin what I hoped to be an awesome life.
 

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.
 

Recently discharged veterans shouldn’t have to struggle to find work when they return home from service, but they often do. AmeriCorps VISTA Heather Hays is helping vets make the most of a program that lets them serve their country in a new way while placing them on a pathway to permanent employment.
 

After defending our country in locations all around the world, many veterans find more battles await them when they return home. A new initiative was announced today to support and ease the reintegration of returning service members, veterans, and their families as they search for jobs and support services.
 

In the aftermath of September 11th, we came together as a country to show that we were there for each other. This year’s National Day of Service and Remembrance once again reminded us of that unity.
 

Paul Reickhoff, president and CEO of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, has an idea about a great, untapped American resource. He believes national service models based on AmeriCorps to harness and leverage the skills of military veterans and can “help people think about us as the cavalry, not as a problem."
 

As we celebrate the 4th of July, we celebrate our patriotism and the millions who have shown their love of country by wearing the uniform. There are a few Veterans among us -- 16,000 so far -- who came home and volunteered for a second time and served their communities though AmeriCorps.
 

For some veterans, it feels like another battle begins when they return home from serving their country – getting a place to call home.
 

The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) just announced a tremendous commitment to support veterans and military families at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service. From expanded grants to increased “people power” in areas of need, we are ready to stand with our soldiers to provide opportunities that will help them continue their service here at home while we serve their special needs.
 

For an aging individual coping with the loss of mobility, lack of proper foundations in and around a home can lead to difficulties remaining independent and mobile. This is especially true of our nation's veterans and as a nation, we have a duty to take care of these individuals how have sacrificed so much for our country.
 

My grandmother lived in Texas, and she would remind me that everything was bigger there -- including their hearts. The work of one person, empowered by a Corporation for National and Community Service program, demonstrates how thousands of people are making a Texas-sized impact on the lives of our nation's veterans.
 

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.
 

Service has many meanings. To a member of the Armed Forces, service is duty, pride, and honor. Those of us who wear – or have worn – the uniform have a deep sense of conviction and purpose.
 

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.
 

Helping homeless veterans get off the streets feels like work Duane Magee was made to do, and his tireless quest puts him behind the wheel for thousands of miles each year to find them. He is living proof to vets that recovery from homelessness and incarceration is possible because their story is his story, and his quiet mission to assist them led to his nomination for a 2012 Martin Luther King Drum Major for Service Award.
 

Of the 130,000 veterans in Idaho, more than 30,000 are registered with the Idaho Department of Labor to receive employment resources and job training. However, budget cuts have put this program in jeopardy.
 

Many years ago, I stepped off a plane from Iraq and onto the tarmac at Pope Airfield in Fort Bragg, NC. The scene was filled with open arms, cheers, the sound of muffled grunts of joy as weeping kids jumped into the arms of their parents, and spouses' soft cries of love and longing. The sounds of reunions were deafening as they bounced off the high walls of the hangar -- it was a sound that I welcomed, and remember to this day.
 

As America's heroes return from war zones and transition back into civilian life, many are facing challenges finding work. Last month, more than over 857,000 veterans were unemployed, and the jobless rate for post-9/11 veterans is 13.1 percent.
 

As America's heroes return from deployments abroad and transition back into civilian life, many are facing challenges in finding employment. With the unemployment rate among recently returned veterans hovering around 12 percent, these men and women who volunteered to courageously serve our country should not have to return home with bleak opportunities in sight.