A Champion for Public Service
Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 11:46 AM 
Photo used with kind permission from Miriam's Kitchen
In the past few months we've seen our First Lady engaged in a range of service activities. On the National Day of Service, Mrs. O helped to assemble care packages for military families. At Miriam's Kitchen, a Washington, DC food kitchen known for using fresh, quality foods, she scooped mushroom risotto at lunchtime (photo above). And sporting blue suede hiking boots, Mrs. O recently helped YouthBuild with the construction of a new home.
Public service is an effort Mrs. O is championing as First Lady, in action and now words. Yesterday USA Today published an article penned by Mrs. O, in which the First Lady wrote of her experiences in service, as well as the new opportunities that will arise from the recently passed Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. More broadly, Mrs. O presented a call to action for America's youth:
"When so many people are struggling to make ends meet, we need everyone pulling together to solve our nation's problems and to lift up our fellow Americans. And this includes our young people. Today, more than ever, we need their energy, enthusiasm and idealism."
Mrs. O continued, recalling her experience at Public Allies, the AmeriCorps program she founded in Chicago:
"There are few things more rewarding than watching young people recognize they have the power to enrich not only their own lives, but the lives of those around them as well."
The full article is absolutely worth a read. While not of a fashion focus, it's an effort quite stylish in its own right.
Media
Reader Comments (47)
"While not of a fashion focus, it’s an effort quite stylish in its own right."
Indeed. I don't care how fashionable you are, if you don't have a good heart, if you aren't willing to reach out and help others, you don't have style. Michelle has style.
She personifies a modern day, intelligent woman. And it helps that she has great style.
www.platformmag.net
Thanks Mrs. T. And I totally agree with Hyde Parker. Mrs. O has style outside, but more importantly, has style, substance, and goodness on the inside.
Leah D. Thank you for the garden shot from yesterday. I think I'll have to copy the design - on a much smaller scale. Those raised bed boxes are beautiful - maybe cedar or redwood.
Mrs. O has been and continues to be the change that she wishes to see in the world. She's such an inspiration. Choosing to leave a high powered law firm to work in community service is gutsy and selfless - the road less traveled. What an example!
Everything she does, she does with such style! A real example to us all!! :-)
Kisses from Paris
xoxo
www.chicsetera.com
Hey:
So far, I think First Lady Michelle Obama is doing great. She is classy, has a great smile and very humble. She would make a great first lady beloved by not Americans but the whole world. I wish her, her husband and family good health, more success and long life- BOLO, THE "HOT ROD"
BEVI- back when the WH garden was all the talk...I saw somewhere an actual diagram of the garden. It was either here or on a news program. Google it and see if it comes up.
Good luck and happy gardening!
Thanks Ann#1 - I did that and am good to go. I like the pathways and the smart idea to have a large border between the grass and the actual garden that is mulched so grass does not get into the actual garden bed. My version will be much much smaller, but fits my fan-shaped space next to my house perfectly! The deer have eaten more veggies from my old garden than we have, and I have realized that I have to site the garden right next to my house.
A woman after my own heart...
I especially adore this woman!
I read the article last night and thought it was well phrased and - to me at least - inspiring. It's a simple idea that I think we're running the risk of losing sight of, all around the world. As you all know I've been inspired to apply as a volunteer for an adult literacy programme as a result of what Mrs O has been doing. What shocked me when I read the article, were all the vitriolic comments that people have posted about it. It seems that people really don't want to see that they can make a difference and be happy. There was a staggering amount of bile and hatred. You know, there are people in the public eye I really believe we'd be better off without, but I wouldn't find an article on them and then spend twenty minutes writing a thesis on why I've got the god given right to be nasty about 'em! Lunacy!
Bevi - re the garden - we've made all our own raised beds out of abandoned crates and pallets, paint pots, broken buckets and old grout pots. It's amazing how money you can save if you recycle! I can send you photo's if you're interested?
Its official, Mrs. O will not be accompanying President Obama to Trinidad & Tobago according to the T&T Guardian newspaper. Instead she will be with her daughters that are on Easter Break and she will continue her tour of Federal Agencies.
Hm, come to think of it continuing the federal agency tours doesn't really make sense, because the Summit is over the weekend but whatever the case.....Mrs. O will be taking a break. Glad she gets to be with her girls. I'm still overjoyed from the seeing the whole family (including First Granny) involved with the Easter Egg Roll. :p
Hi Posh -
Yes - recycling is the way to go. I would love to see your photos! Mrs. T, Is there someway Posh Tater and I can exchange information off-website?
I've emailed Mrs T and asked her to forward my email to you. PTx
Marist Poll out today. A New Era for First Ladies:
http://maristpoll.marist.edu/416-a-new-era-for-first-ladies/
Marist poll finds 44% think Michelle Obama represents change for the better as FLOTUS.
PHENOMENAL WOMAN - I stand by Mrs.O in the belief that women CAN be INTELLIGENT, STRONG AND SEXY without sacrificing one for the other, while maintaining dignity and self-respect.
Thanks Mrs.T, for posting this article... I can more than appreciate the effort by Mrs. O to promote service and in the process, promote all the good work that young people are doing.
Cheers!!!
Does anyone have ideas about how we (the Mrs-O community) can help champion volunteerism?
Hi Rowena,
In my recent former life I was a director of community service learning in the public school system. A starting point is to go on the Corporation for National Service website. Americorp, VISTA, RSVP, and Learn and Serve America are the 4 main branches of the service corps. You can get all sorts of great ideas about how a community can activate volunteerism. As this is a fashion blog there is a natural connections to meeting a critical need for the basics - clothing. But one could also make a case for education - maybe providing a scholarship fund for young people who express a desire to study fashion design? Ot those in the fashion community mentoring young people who want to get into the business? The possibilities are really endless. There is no wrong solution!
Posh Tater, there's a sad part of the American culture where the more one person is idolized and 'worshipped,' the more people there will be who will try to tear her down from her pedestal. I'm not sure you Brits do that, but I know Australia has a similar quirk. They're just nicer about it.
The vitriolic comments in USA Today are mostly that, but also show how divided our country has become. This economic situation has made many fearful and brought out the worst in a lot of people, I'm afraid. Let's just hope, as things improve, that Mrs O's words about needing to 'give back' make more sense to those people.
I hear that Chicagoan and wholeheartedly second that hope.
Yes, it's done here too. I find it mystifying and tedious. In Australia I know they refer to it as Tall Poppy Syndrome. In England, we are encouraged not to be extraordinary right from the beginning because that is showing off, i.e. bad. I have spent my whole life ignoring demands to sit down, shut up and "just be normal". Consequently I've had a very nice time and got to do a lot of things I really wanted to and helped a lot of people along the way. But I am still constantly amazed that humans try and shred popular members of their own species.
I believe that if you can't say anything nice you should stay quiet, and if you don't like something, be constructive if you absolutely have to say something. Obviously this is too difficult for some!
In response to what this blog community could do to promote service, here's an idea:
Since this is a fashion blog maybe we could highlight clothing drives that are taking place through the Red Cross and other organizations in response to disasters. As my name suggests, I am an American in Italy for a semester. There was a very tragic earthquake that hit Italy about a week ago, and now more than 50,000 people are homeless.
Just an idea.......
I absolutely love this idea. Please keep posting suggestions, or email me directly: contact@mrs-o.org, and we will devise a plan of action!
I love the idea of a clothing drive supporting the Red Cross/Red Crescent and other reputable organizations!
Me too - we can all access the Red Cross so that would be nice.
Another idea that came up for me was Dress for Success. They work to outfit women who want to go back to work who don't have the clothes for interview. Right down to underwear and shoes. In terms of empowering women to go back into the workplace, I can't think of a finer organisation. There's an article here, from The Times.
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/fashion/article4774333.ece
I have been personally inspired to volunteer. I wasn't expecting volunteerism to be a cause taken up by FLOTUS. However, I'm glad she did. I've been moved to action.
I think there are lots of things we can do personally, each of us find some particular area where we can volunteer and go do it.
As to USA Today, a lot of rightwingers seem to have decided to post in comment sections lately. Good thing they do not represent the majority of Americans,according to the polls.
Pretty pathetic to look at the differences between the parties, Democrats trying to find wys to make the world better, and Republicans just complaining and trying to tear things down. I long for the days of my youth when we had a respectable Republican party - Rockefeller, Goldwater, etc.
Mexico's First Lady, pretty individual in her own right -
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/16/margarita-zavala-mexicos_n_187852.html
The clothing drive is a great idea! It would be nice if we could donate on behalf of the Mrs. O website.
There are also good organizations that collect clothing for women who are attempting to return to the job market, but who may not have business-appropriate clothes. One is dress for success dot org.
Those are great ideas! Mrs. T, do you have any suggestions about how Mrs. O.org could sponsor this? I think it's great to respond to both a global need (earthquake victims in Italy) and our own women here in this country.
Mexico's First Lady's shawls are very pretty, appropriate and stylish. Thanks for the photos.
Posh Tater, I apologize for repeating your post regarding Dress for Success! I didn't see it - maybe it was in moderation.
Also, I love the Mexican First Lady's shawls, a very a nice nod to her culture.
But, and I'm not trying to be critical at all, I'm truly asking -- in the second to last picture in that Huffington Post gallery, Laura Bush is wearing something around her neck and I can't figure out what it is. It's a very unusual necklace.
Christina,
What ever that is IT IS STRANGE!
Laura Bush's "strangeness"- ladies its her sunglasses hanging on her necklace
Christina, no problem at all! I just thought it was a particularly appropriate charity as it was about empowering women - by way of fashion and by way of being able to interview and return to the workplace. For me it ties in with that thing Michelle said recently, about a society being as healthy as its women. She's said it more than once but it sits in my mind.
@CD
Duh -- I feel stupid now. Last night I was thinking "is that some strange pendant?" ROFL!
I'll have to say DUH too and that I also feel stupid now, especially since I hang my sunglasses in the same place a lot of the times! Guess we weren't expecting to see a First Lady do that.
Ladies and Gentlemen...Bo "Diddley" Obama has a comic book. Yep, he just made his debut this past Tuesday and he already has a book....
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/arts/2009/04/16/2009-04-16_bo_the_obama_familys_portuguese_water_dog_gets_his_first_childrens_picture_book.html
American-n-Rome, I saw that too! The NY Times had a short write-up here:
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/15/first-dog-gets-his-first-childrens-book/
Bevi, I am definitely going to keep a Mrs-O.org service effort on my radar. I want to think further about what makes the most sense. For example, we could pick one cause that we all contribute to, such as a Dress for Success... or we could create a seperate place on the site to pledge and share experiences serving in our own local areas. Open to any and all suggestions.
Hi Mrs. T -
Sounds good! I'll talk to some of my contacts and get some feedback from VISTA and Americorp folks.
Great idea Bevi & Mrs T...
Count me in for whatever support/donations/service you decide to push through this site - I'd love to contribute...
What will Mrs O wear when she meets the King and Queen of Jordan
Gary,
When is she going to Jordan.
Do you have a link?
I like the idea of doing both things. One nominated charity AND a place for us to comment on our individual experiences volunteering. That way, people who can't afford to donate can do volunteering, and people who don't fancy volunteering can donate. But we can all do SOMEthing.
I read in one of your interviews that you've had traffic on the site from 192 countries. I'm really excited at the idea that 192 countries could be involved in making a difference.
Leah, the King is in Washington.
THE FIRST LADY
First Lady Marks Women's History Month at Arlington Women's Memorial
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/03/03/first_lady_marks_womens_histor.html
One of the first official appearances that Mrs.O solely attended was to honor Women's History Month at Arlington Women's Memorial back in March.
Women make up about 15 percent of today's military (270,000 of 1,800,000 Active and Reserve). Over 100 have given their lives since 2001, and thousands have sustained physical and psychological casualties that will stay with them forever. As of now, there are fifty thousand women serving in Afghanistan and Iraq. These women deserve our support. If there is something that we can do to make our fellow Americans, fellow sisters, daughters and friends feel better for just one moment while they serve in less than bearable circumstances it would be worth our effort.
We need to make our packages from home special, “For Woman Only.” Not that I am shunning the brave men that are over there, but they get excited when the Beef Jerky or the Twizzlers arrive from stateside. We should send something that brightens up the day of our “Women Warriors”, something that helps them get through the day knowing that there are people back home that get it. People that understand that they are there serving our country, faithfully fulfilling our governmental leaders orders. Some people forget that there is no politics in the military, they perform their duty.
I suggest we collect and send packages . We can include undergarments that are more comfortable than the GI Issue, and our gals can go out their tents looking all camo, but feeling all whammo. Remember nothing that melts, it will be 118 degrees there soon. There are many items that they would enjoy receiving.
Given the heat and dry conditions they also like the crystal light/koolade powder mixtures for their water bottles. An assortment of hard candy you enjoy at home. Just think of items you would like to receive. This doesn’t have to get personally expensive. Ask your friends, family or neighbors to donate one item.
Just another idea. This could be done individually or as a ‘Mrs. O community.