Highlights from Atlanta 2001

SARA E. MELENDEZ: Good afternoon, and welcome to Atlanta! I'm Sara Meléndez, president of INDEPENDENT SECTOR, and it's wonderful to have you here.

How many times have we all said that rather automatically? "It's wonderful to have you here." This year, my friends, those words have a whole new emphasis. I am so very glad you're here—that we're here together at this time. Our lives are different today, and we need to be here, together, to share our reactions to the horrible events of September 11.

Many of us know of those who were lost, and with some of us, it was painfully closer to home. But we also need to share the amazing responses our citizens and institutions have made to those events. And those responses are being noted over and over again.

Haya El Nasser, writing in USA TODAY: "If America's grief can be measured by its generosity, the nation's sorrow is running deeper than ever. The outpouring of donations to help victims of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington is unprecedented in its largess and speed. Americans have always been generous in both good and bad times. But this time, their benevolence seemingly knows no limits."

And this from Judy Lowe in the Christian Science Monitor: "Americans are doers. At no time has this been more evident than in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Even as many were trying to make sense of incidents that made no sense, they began asking themselves, what can I do to help? Quickly blood banks were flooded with potential donors, New Yorkers opened their apartments and offices to those whose own were damaged or temporarily unreachable. Companies and individuals set up funds for the victims' families."

These stories and commentaries can be found throughout our newspapers and the airwaves. Something horrific happened. But something incredible is happening.

So, what can we make of all of this? My response is this: we must ensure that terrorists do not succeed in turning us away from our vision of democracy, freedom, human dignity and the elimination of injustice. We must speak out against intolerance, racism and prejudice wherever it occurs. We must find ways to sustain the generous spirit of giving and volunteering that is essential to the long-term health and vitality of our communities. Let us work together to turn terror into hope. And, let us turn the tide of hatred and violence, to make our communities and country even stronger symbols of liberty and justice for all!

And, with liberty and justice for all... let every voice be heard!

My friends, we decided on the theme for this conference months ago, but now, what renewed meaning and emphasis it has for the next three days. So let us... every one of us, make the most of it. 

Let me return to the news for a minute to share something else with you. On September 26, writing in The New York Times, Harvard professor Stephen Jay Gould wrote, "The patterns of human history mix decency and depravity in equal measure. We often assume, therefore, that such a fine balance of results must emerge from societies made of decent and depraved people in equal numbers. "But we need to expose and celebrate the fallacy of this conclusion. Good and kind people outnumber all others by thousands to one. Thus in what I like to call the Great Asymmetry, every spectacular incident of evil will be balanced by ten thousand acts of kindness, too often unnoted and invisible as the ordinary efforts of a vast majority. "We have a duty," he says, "almost a holy responsibility, to record and honor the victorious weight of these innumerable little kindnesses."

To which I add... who better than we... to lead in the recording and honoring? Friends, enjoy the conference. Let every voice be heard, and remember the responsibility of leadership. Listen. Share. Take note... take stock... and take time... to make some new and valued friends. And... I'll say it again... I am so very glad you're here.

I want you to know that this year, as a result of unforeseen events mostly unrelated to September 11, some speakers could not attend the conference, and we have had to make a few changes to the program. However, I assure you that the quality of our sessions remains as high as ever.

Now, I want to take a moment to recognize some people who have worked very hard to make this conference happen and bring us together. First, I want to give a big thank you to Pat Willis of BellSouth, a former IS Board member and our conference planning committee chair. Pat and her committee have done wonderful work and I know we'll all benefit from it over the next three days. Pat, please stand up. You'll see much more of Pat at our dinner tonight.

The Host Committee has made wonderful preparations for our visit and has arranged a great host city event tomorrow night at the World of Coca-Cola Museum, and many thanks to Coca-Cola for hosting us. Chairing the Host Committee this year is Charles "Pete" McTier, president of the Woodruff Foundation, here in Atlanta. Unfortunately, Pete can't be with us today. He had a trip come up where he needs to be in Mexico today and tomorrow, but would the members of the Host Committee who are here please stand.

Pete mentioned that Pat Willis, our meeting chair, being here in Atlanta, was very active also with the Host Committee and he also acknowledged the good work of Alicia Philipp, our former IS board member and president of the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta. Alicia, thank you for your hard work.

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Friends, what happened on September eleven has changed us all—and it has changed our conference. Sessions, starting with this one and continuing right through to the final plenary luncheon on Tuesday, have been changed—in some cases, just a little and in some cases, completely, to allow us to discuss how these events affect our future work. We've also added a number of breakfast roundtables on this subject, Tuesday morning. In most cases, these changes are reflected in the final program. Please check your programs carefully.

Enjoy the conference. Thank you!