This Spring 12 teenagers, all volunteers with the Student Conservation Association (SCA), were permitted to tell only their parents why they just had to skip school. As it turned out planting trees with the President of the United States was an acceptable excuse for missing classroom time.
Headquartered in Charlestown, New Hampshire, the SCA is the nation's largest and oldest youth conservation corps. The nonprofit organization pursues a mission of building conservation leaders by providing high school and college students with hands-on service opportunities in all 50 states, from urban communities to national parks and forests.
In April, when the White House wanted to mark adoption of the historic Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act - legislation designed to increase the number of service opportunities across the country - officials contacted the SCA. President Obama wanted to sign the bill and join the SCA students for a volunteer conservation project at a Washington, D.C. area national park. SCA is a leader in the service community with more than 50 years' standing and teaming up with its members would demonstrably put the Act into action and model the concept of national service.
As White House and SCA planners mapped out the event, it grew to include not only the President but First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, and former President Clinton, a long-time service advocate who had launched SCA service-partner AmeriCorps in the early 90s. Security for this All-Star service squad would be extremely tight. The only exemptions beyond the participants: the teens' moms and dads.
One D.C. high school student said her mother cried upon hearing the news. Another confessed he had accidentally told his principal he was going to meet the President but caught himself before revealing any further details - he wasn't sure if the administrator believed him. And one young man was in trouble with his girlfriend for being so suspiciously secretive.
On April 21st, the SCA team gathered as directed at Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens by 11:00 a.m., even though Mr. Obama and the other dignitaries weren't to arrive for another six hours. Squeals and high-fives soon ensued as the White House advance staff assigned two SCA members to each V.I.P. for the tree-planting.
After a quick walkthrough and site prep, the SCA members exited the park to allow for a security sweep. When the crew was allowed to reenter, they couldn't believe their eyes. A Secret Service vehicle had driven right through the center of the marshy project site, leaving two deep, ugly trenches in its wake.
With the President and his entourage just minutes away, and the White House advance team worried that their photo op was about to become a photo flop, the SCA team sprung into action. They their grabbed shovels, refilled the gullies, and scattered dry brush over the disturbed area. In a manner of minutes, it looked good as new.
Suddenly, as helicopters rumbled overhead, the motorcade pulled up. A smiling President Obama sought out his arranged SCA contacts, bellowing "Where's Brenda? Where's Chris?" Behind him trailed the First Lady, the Bidens and President Clinton. Mr. Obama and Mr. Clinton came straight from the bill signing ceremony; they'd ditched their jackets and ties but were hardly dressed for the work at hand. As water seeped around his attractive black loafers, SCA volunteer Brenda Lopez jokingly admonished the President for his choice of footwear. "Someone forgot my boots!" Obama retorted.
After introductions and instructions, they assembled planters broke off into teams to begin their project. President Obama let Mr. Clinton dig the first hole - "let's see what you got, Clinton!" - and as the media cameras rolled and clicked, the President playfully teased his wife for not making sufficicent headway on her River Birch. "Our tree is a lot bigger than yours!" the First Lady explained. "Oh, a little trash talk," her husband replied.
Chris Jackson, a 17-year old from Baltimore, says as he worked with the President he pitched Mr. Obama on "my ideas about green cities projects in every major city across America. Youth today don't have enough passion for something. Students have to know what their passion is and go about doing it. Live for the moment and try to make change and make that change accessible to others."
When Jackson noted that both he and the President were left-handers, Mr. Obama gave the teen his left work glove as a souvenir. "He was just real friendly," Chris says.
With the work completed, the President and others thanked the students for their service, posed for photos, and eventually headed back to the White House. "We did it!" shouted one of the volunteers. Another used his phone to access a news report of the event that had only concluded minutes before.
The delighted SCA members gathered around to study the photos…all but one. He was on his own phone, calling his girlfriend to finally share his news.
Conservation Closer to Home
While they don't always get to serve with the President, SCA members make a difference on public lands in America every day. Here in New Hampshire, SCA has played a critical role in preserving the state's natural heritage for more than 40 years. In the process, its members have protected many of New Hampshire's leading economic and natural resource assets.
The Granite State has received more than $4 million in conservation services from 1,500 SCA members, and a similar number of New Hampshire youth have traveled to spectacular natural and cultural sites across the country to render conservation services there.
SCA serves 60 in-state partners including NH Parks and Recreation, the NH Department of Transportation, and the Society for the Protection of NH Forests. SCA members annually aid 20 state parks including Franconia Notch, Mount Sunapee, and Hampton Beach by building trails, eradicating invasive species and restoring habitats. They also serve at Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, NH. In addition, SCA volunteers provide environmental education to 1,500 Manchester and Allenstown elementary school students each year out of a residential program operated in conjunction with AmeriCorps out of Bear Brook State Park.
Overall, SCA volunteers annually render more than 45,000 hours of service to New Hampshire parks and other local partners.
SCA's Founder, Elizabeth Cushman Titus Putnam, was recognized by the Concord Monitor in 2000 as one of "100 People Who Shaped the New Hampshire Century." Liz, who has a home on Lake Sunapee, is one of over 1,300 SCA alumni who reside in New Hampshire. SCA also counts some 1,200 New Hampshire residents among its generous donors.
With an annual operating budget of more than $32 million, and over half its 180 employees based in Charlestown, SCA is a substantial direct contributor to the New Hampshire economy. And as a practicing green volunteer organization, SCA has a minimal environmental footprint while its employees further contribute to the Connecticut River Valley's quality of life by supporting numerous nonprofits and causes.
Additionally, as SCA welcomes leading figures from the environmental, education, youth development, governmental, and service communities, it constantly serves as an effective promotional vehicle for the State of New Hampshire. For more information on SCA is available at http://www.thesca.org/.
This article is intended to serve as a summary of the issues outlined herein. While it may include some general guidance, it is not intended as, nor is it a substitute for, legal advice. Your receipt of Good Company or any of its individual articles does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and Sheehan Phinney Bass + Green or the Sheehan Phinney Capitol Group. The opinions expressed in Good Company are those of the authors of the specific articles.
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