Albuquerque Business First recognized 24 New Mexico nonprofit organizations for their contributions to the community at its inaugural Nonprofit of the Year awards.  Rocky Mountain Youth Corps is a 2013 Honoree under the category of Environment & Animals!

Nearly 350 people attended the sold-out event at the Sheraton Uptown in Albuquerque, where individuals and organizations that have benefited from the nonprofits’ work shared their stories via video testimonials.

Nonprofit of the Year honorees were selected in seven categories: arts, culture and humanities; crisis resources; education; environment and animals; family services; health and human services; and public and societal benefit.

Read more: Albuquerque Business First names Rocky Mountain Youth Corps as 2013 Honoree under the category of...

A proposal that would help young Americans understand that civic duty is not restricted to the military.

By General Stanley McChrystal, Wall Street Journal

My father first took me to Gettysburg when I was 12 years old. He was a lieutenant colonel in the Army, home from the first of two tours in Vietnam. I remember in particular the hundreds of obelisks poking over the berms, the oxidized plaques attached to rocks and the statues lining the roadways. All spoke for the thousands of men and boys who had died in the grass and dirt serving their nation.

I was young, but I recognized the gravity of the place.

Read more: Lincoln's Call to Service—and Ours

In the aftermath of the devastating tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma, last week, we have witnessed remarkable courage and compassion.

From the first responders who pulled survivors from the rubble, to the teachers who shielded their students, to the residents who sheltered their neighbors, Oklahomans have displayed extraordinary strength and resilience.  Read more on the National Service Blog

Rumor Control

There is a lot of misinformation circulating on social networks regarding the response and recovery effort for the Oklahoma tornadoes. Rumors spread fast: please tell a friend, share this page, and help us provide accurate information about the types of assistance available.

Check the FEMA website for the latest updates to this list of rumors and their true or false status.

Destroyed Homes

Rumor: Some media have been reporting 10,000 – 12,000 destroyed homes as a result of the tornado.

Fact: In reality, there are approximately 1,200 destroyed homes – closer to figures supported by registration numbers, American Red Cross data and geospatial reports.

Read more: CNCS Disaster Brief: The Oklahoma Standard: Neighbor Helping Neighbor

On Tuesday May 9th the Wellness Coalition's AmeriCorps members made a presentation to the Silver City Town Council and Mayor. The Part of the Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service led by the Corporation for National and Community Service. AmeriCorps members Tim Miller and Mellisa Cano made the presentation to the Council and where supported by the presence of members Richard Leves, Krista Joslin-Gay, Justin Blanton, Kimberly Brown and Jackie Olea.

Tim spoke about his work with youth in the Youth Volunteer Corps program and at the SPOT a youth drop in center hosted by the Wellness Coalition. He was particularly proud of the work he is doing supporting the Grant County Youth Leadership Program.

Mellisa presented statistics that helped underline the impact AmeriCorps is having in our community and how members are helping local nonprofits address critical needs.

Read more: Mayors Day of Recognition Silver City Style

Rio Grande Community Farm was honored to participate in the first ever national AmeriCorps Mayor's Week on April 9, 2013 by assisting and enjoying Mayors Day of Volunteerism at Civic Plaza in Albuquerque. The day began rainy and windy as our crew gathered at Civic Plaza to help prepare for the festivities. Along with 4 other AmeriCorps programs, we moved indoors to the Mayor's Office. Here we met with staff from the Mayor's Office of Volunteerism and Engagement and received several assignments including greeters, table registration, and equipment movers. We then deployed out to the Albuquerque Convention Center where we prepared for over 80 separate volunteer groups and non-profits that would participate in the noontime events. RGCF AmeriCorps members were on the front lines as several hundred individuals came to the event. At noon Mayor Richard Barry began the ceremonies by honoring all the non-profits and volunteers that have contributed so much to the Albuquerque community. Over 30 individuals were nominated and received Certificates of Appreciation. Several speakers talked about the role of volunteerism and how essential this is to the wellbeing of our community. Several organizations were honored as making a particularly strong impact in the community. Michael Garcia, State AmeriCorps VISTA Director spoke about the hundreds of AmeriCorps members deployed throughout the State. We were treated to pizza and then our RGCF members helped cleanup after the event. Members got a chance to view the over 60 booths that were setup to describe volunteer activities in Albuquerque. We are proud to be a part of the larger volunteer community that is doing so much to make Albuquerque a great place to live.

Read more: AmeriCorps Mayors Volunteerism Day - RGCF

On March 11, Rocky Mountain Youth Corps celebrated AmeriCorps week in Tucumcari New Mexico.

Pictured here is the RMYC/AmeriCorps Energy Efficiency crew along with representative from City of Tucumcari , Quay County Commissioners ,and Romaine Serna

In honor of AmeriCorps Week, Teach For America corps members focused on community engagement by inviting speakers into their classroom to teach a guest lesson. Two of the guest lessons are profiled below.

AmeriCorps Member: Tracey Tomlinson

Tracey is in her first year as a 9th grade biology teacher at Gallup High School in Gallup, New Mexico. Tracey graduated from Colby College in 2012.

My guest speaker is Shruthi Rajashekara. Shruthi is in-between her third and fourth of medical school as Harvard and is currently living in Gallup as she finishes up her field work for her master's degree through the Harvard School of Public Health. Her research focuses on access to healthy food on the Navajo Reservation. She and her team and identifying areas of need and are working on a number of strategic interventions to increase healthy food access for people living in the more remote parts of the reservation.

Read more: AmeriCorps Week Reflection