CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— Extensions of Remarks E1047 HON
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð Extensions of Remarks E1047 4's anchor and urban affairs specialist. Most A TRIBUTE TO CITY YEAR SAN and said it really helped them. They thought recently, she joined Congresswoman Barbara ANTONIO they had passed it.'' Lee's citizen delegation to report a week-long Fighting Back, a substance abuse, crime and violence prevention and community de- series on the people, culture and politics of HON. CHARLES A. GONZALEZ velopment program, has 60 full-time volun- Cuba and on Cuba's relationship with the OF TEXAS teers. They are recruiting more than 100 high United States. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES school students for a new part-time service Belva has received six local Emmys, the Thursday, May 20, 1999 program in San Antonio. 1996 Governor's Award of the Northern Cali- Mr. GONZALEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today City Year and Southside High School re- cently started a part-time volunteer pro- fornia Chapter of the National Academy of Tel- to ask unanimous consent to submit into the gram for students called City Heroes. evision Arts and Sciences, a Certificate of Ex- RECORD an article that appeared in the San Most of the full-time volunteers started cellence from the California Associated Press Antonio Express News recently. their year of service in August and will fin- Television and Radio Association, and the The article highlights City Year San Antonio, ish in June. Golden Gadfly Award of the Media Alliance. a unique public and private partnership pro- Volunteers operate primarily on the city's She has honorary doctorates from Golden gram for the national service movement. City West, East and South sides but can partici- Gate University and John F. Kennedy Univer- Year San Antonio has contributed more than pate in programs anywhere in the city, said sities. The Media Academy of Oakland offers 30,000 hours of service to the San Antonio Scott Hirsch of the Texas Commission on community in its 3 years of service. City Year Volunteerism and Community Service. Vol- an annual journalism scholarship in Ms. unteers themselves come from all areas of Davis's name. San Antonio has established a mentor and town and sometimesÐlike MillerÐfrom out When Rollin Post announced his retirement, tutor program for children from elementary of town. Belva said: ``I've been learning from Rollin school through high school, including pro- Hirsch said the commission is working on Post for three decades, and we have become grams on the environment, domestic violence guidelines to evaluate how effective volun- prevention, HIV/Aids awareness, and tech- teers throughout Texas have been in the past the real political odd couple. He has taught me five years since the AmeriCorps program was how to make the most complicated political nology education. I am proud of the work and the service that founded. Overall, the various volunteer pro- issues interesting to a sometimes disinterested City Year provides to the San Antonio commu- grams are going strong. electorate.'' nity. I look forward to the continued success Hirsch added that associations with other programs can cause confusion. ``Sometimes, Rollin Post has covered politics in the San and future progress of City Year San Antonio. Francisco Bay Area for more than 40 years. when you're at a cocktail party and you AMERICORPS WORKERS HELPING OTHERS mention you work for AmeriCorps, people With keen understanding of public affairs, CITYWIDE think it no longer exists,'' Hirsch said. Rollin has covered 14 national political con- (By Joseph Barrios) Some of the benefits to the program are in- ventions. In addition to state and local political .. Nathan Miller grew up in a quiet Kan- tangible, said Bill Blair, director at the issues, Rollin reported from Cuba in 1978 on sas City, Kan., neighborhood but wanted to George Gervin Youth Center. trade, tourism, and hijacking. In 1986, Rollin travel and learn about different places. Regularly, when volunteers are painting a was on special assignment in the Philippines He graduated from high school and then house or cleaning up an abandoned lot, during the transition to democracy. applied to serve with City Year, one of the neighbors will stop by and offer their help. AmeriCorps volunteer programs operating in ``I say, `Sure, come on and join us.' You ``Rollin is an old-fashioned reporter who San Antonio. can't beat that sort of thing,'' Blair said. gives you the facts and is genuinely interested The 19-year-old Miller now works 12-hour Neighbors can also submit ideas for service in the process, the politics, the issues and days, sometimes tutoring West Side children projects to any of the programs like City ideas. He is exceptionally fair-minded and as part of Project Learn to Read and some- Year or Fighting Back. doesn't have a cynical bone in his body,'' times working with San Antonio Alternative AmeriCorps volunteer benefits can include Housing on minor construction for elderly wrote John Jacobs, political editor of health insurance, a weekly stipend, uniforms neighbors. and a post-service education award of $4,725 McClatchy Newspapers. With a passion for His favorite responsibility is helping teach that can pay for school or student loans. The politics, along with a touch of idealism, Rollin a nighttime English class for adults seeking program requires a minimum of 1,700 hours a brought clarity and understanding to the polit- citizenship. year from volunteers. ical process. ``I feel like I help them get along better in This fall, Miller will begin college in their lives,'' Miller said, ``I have a chance to Early in his career, Rollin worked for KPIX± Vermont. He said his favorite times as a vol- meet people in drastically different life situ- unteer come when someone thanks him for TV, where he concentrated on politics and ations from mine.'' work that an AmeriCorps volunteer did. general assignments. He was also head writer Miller is one of more than 140 full-time volunteers in the San Antonio area serving ``I have people come up to me all the time. and producer for ``The Paul Coates Report,'' a They see your shirt and want to thank you,'' nationally syndicated television interview with various AmeriCorps programs. Al- though the volunteers are affiliated with dif- Miller said. ``They can be thanking you for show. Rollin joined KQED in 1973 to work on ferent funding agencies, their goals are the something that happened three years or three programs: ``A Closer Look,'' ``News- same. three days ago.'' room,'' and ``California Tonight.'' In September They want to tackle some of San Antonio's 1979, Rollin joined KRON±TV, where he blight and improve people's lives. f served as NewsCenter4's political editor for 18 AmeriCorps is the national service program WORKING ON A SOLUTION years. While co-anchoring on KRON's ``Cali- started by Congress and President Clinton in 1993. Programs can be funded with federal fornia This Week.'' Rollin and Belva brought dollars or matched by a local ``parent'' orga- passion and insight to the issues of the day. nization. HON. BOB SCHAFFER Because of their pioneering spirit and leader- The George Gervin Youth Center has 20 OF COLORADO ship, Rollin and Belva became mentors to the full-time AmeriCorps volunteers and Habitat IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES next generation of journalists. Rollin speaks of for Humanity has a dozen full-time volun- Thursday, May 20, 1999 Belva with great affection: ``She's a Type A; teers working in San Antonio. Miller works for the 10-year-old City Year I'm the type who likes to take naps.'' Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, in the matter program, which has 70 AmeriCorps volun- of the Columbine Massacre, I hereby submit Currently, Rollin hosts ``Our World This teers and works out of an office downtown. An average day for h im varies somewhat to the RECORD a statement issued by the Col- Week,'' an international news show produced orado State Board of Education. by BayTV in cooperation with the World Affairs from Rudy Beltran, 23, a full-time volunteer with the Just Serve AmeriCorps program run These remarks, I commend to my col- Council of Northern California. by San Antonio Fighting Back of the United leagues upon consideration of various pro- Among his many awards, Rollin received Way. posals pending this Congress. Clearly, the the prestigious Broadcast Preceptor Award Beltran, based at the Barbara Jordan cen- thoughts offered by the Colorado State Board from the 32nd annual San Francisco State ter of the city's East Side, is a full-time stu- of Education, signed a thoughtful approach to dent at the University of Texas at San Anto- University Broadcast Industry Conference. He nio. He also teaches an evening, English-as- any legislative initiatives we might consider has also been honored by the Coro Founda- a-Second-Language class at Highlands High here and establish a reasonable framework tion for his influential leadership in the public School and tutors high school students in from which to view our responsibilities. arena. English. The statement of the Board is as follows: Recently, Beltran helped several students In celebrating the lives and careers of Belva prepare for the Texas Assessment of Aca- WHAT IS TO BE DONE: SEARCHING FOR Davis and Rollins Post, we are paying tribute demic Skills Test. MEANING IN OUR TRAGEDY to two remarkable people whom we are also ``I definitely get a lot out of it,'' Beltran In the aftermath of the most terrible day fortunate to know as friends. said. ``A couple of students came up to me in Colorado education, when the pain and E1048 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð Extensions of Remarks May 20, 1999 grief of those who have suffered loss is be- We also recognize the routine cruelty and If a utility poured sewage into our streets, yond what words can express, all of us are torment that can occur among adolescents an outraged public would not tolerate it.