Serve Washington to swear in hundreds of AmeriCorps members

AmeriCorps members from across the state will gather Friday, Oct. 25, in Seattle at Serve Washington’s annual swearing-in ceremony to celebrate the beginning of a year of service. More than 500 new or returning AmeriCorps members will be sworn in at the event, scheduled for 10 a.m.–noon at Seattle Center’s Fisher Pavilion.

AmeriCorps members commit to a year of service at nonprofit organizations, state and local governments and educational institutions. This year AmeriCorps members will serve at more than 975 locations throughout Washington. Through their service they will help close achievement gaps for school-age children, prepare low-income students for higher education, protect our environment, and recruit and manage volunteers.

Washington Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib will deliver the keynote speech.

Similar swearing-in ceremonies are happening across the country this fall as more than 75,000 individuals join AmeriCorps. This year marks the 25th anniversary of AmeriCorps. Since its inception in 1994, more than 1 million Americans have served in the program, providing more than 1.5 billion hours of service and earning more than $3.6 billion in education scholarships, of which more than $1 billion has been used to pay off student debt.

Following the ceremony, AmeriCorps members will participate in a variety of activities including a training on youth program quality standards, networking/discussion groups and an environmental restoration project at La Villa Meadows sponsored by EarthCorps, to help to restore this North Seattle green space that borders parts of Thornton Creek and offers habitat for many kinds of wildlife.

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Serve Washington advances national service, volunteerism and civic engagement to improve lives; expands opportunity to meet the local critical needs of residents of Washington; and strengthens community capacity while creating healthy and resilient communities. For more information, visit www.servewashington.wa.gov.

AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the nation’s volunteering and service efforts.

Who:           

• 500 new or returning AmeriCorps members
• AmeriCorps alumni
• Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib
• Amber Martin-Jahn, Serve Washington executive director

What:

AmeriCorps members’ swearing-in ceremony

When:

• Friday, Oct. 25, 10 a.m. – noon
• Open to media. Camera set up at 9:30 a.m.
• Swearing-in oath takes place at end of ceremony
• Service project starts at 1 p.m.
• Training and networking start at 1:30pm.

Where:

Fisher Pavilion – Seattle Center

305 Harrison St.

Seattle, WA 98109

Local contact

Amber Martin-Jahn

Executive director, Serve Washington

Phone: 360-902-0669 or 360-764-0423

The ceremony is open to the public. Media interested in attending or interviewing members should email servewa@ofm.wa.gov with WA Swearing-In Ceremony in the subject line.