January 8, 2009
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Monday, Jan. 19, the national holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is also a National Day of Service that marks Dr. King's commitment to building a nation that cares for and respects all people.
President-elect Barack Obama has called for the National Day of Service to be the start of "an ongoing commitment by Americans to their communities." Both Obama and Vice President-elect Biden will participate in events in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 19, the day before the Presidential Inauguration.
CWA is joining this effort, and I want to encourage all our locals to participate. Our project will be to collect food for community food banks which are facing a critical shortage of food as the economy worsens and need grows.
This CWA action will begin Jan. 12. On Jan. 19, locals will deliver the collected food to the food bank they selected.
CWA also has agreed to work with AT&T in 30 cities to collect food. Drives will begin Jan. 12-19 in six cities with the greatest need: Sacramento, Chicago, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Hartford, Conn., and Dallas, and will continue Jan. 19 through Jan. 27 in the remaining cities.
The first 500 locals to sign up to participate by sending in the attached form will receive an inaugural commemorative gift from CWA. Locals participating will be posted on the special website set up by the Obama team.
Please use the web form to send in your information. You can also download a PDF version to print and fax to 202-434-1377. Thanks for making CWA's part in the National Day of Service a success, for our communities and our union.
In Solidarity,
Larry Cohen
President
