Last month, Sargent Shriver -- public servant, peace builder, and social activist -- passed away. As you may know, he helped create transformational programs such as the Peace Corps and Head Start. Shriver was also deeply committed to the American tradition of service, as he demonstrated by launching Volunteers in Service to America and his devotion to the Special Olympics, founded by his departed, beloved wife, Eunice. He is a hero to many and the impact of his contributions to civil society will live on for generations to come.

As I reflect on Shriver’s life and legacy, the names of other transformational leaders spring to mind. Aung San Suu Kyi, Eleanor Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandhi, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are all heroes to me as is Nelson Mandela. I’m reminded too of other people – perhaps less well known but no less visionary -- who helped shape our sector today:

• Rachel Carson, an ardent environmentalist who sounded alarm bells over the indiscriminate use of pesticides;
• George Edmund and Ruth Standish Baldwin, primary founders of the Urban League, who fought racism and discrimination; and Dorothea Dix, a staunch and fiery advocate for mentally ill people.

We each have our own roll call of heroes. Some of their names are found in history books or chiseled in granite in a place of honor. Others were -- or are -- ordinary people with extraordinary courage and vision. All of these individuals have etched themselves forever in our minds for any number of reasons, such as their unswerving revolve to help those less fortunate or their tenacious pursuit of a more decent and vibrant world for all people. Their stories define those special characteristics that set true leaders apart …

Leaders serve others. On a wintery afternoon in January 1982, Arland Williams of Mattoon, IL, was one of some 75 passengers on Air Florida Flight 90 departing out of Washington National Airport. The 46-year-old bank examiner was heading to Fort Lauderdale, FL. The jet raced down the runway but struggled to get airborne before plunging toward the earth. The plane careened into the 14th Street Bridge and plunged into the icy Potomac River.

Williams survived the watery crash and swam toward a small group of fellow passengers struggling to keep their heads above the rough water. The victims could hear the sweeping blades of a park police helicopter flying towards them and see a dangling a rope just above the nearly-frozen river. Time and again Williams grabbed the lifeline, handed it the other survivors, and watched the helicopter ferry them safety to the shore. After 5 people were plucked from the Potomac, the helicopter returned for one final trip to rescue the man who’d placed others before himself. It was too late. Hypothermia claimed Williams’ life as he slipped beneath the dark surface, his fate joined forever with the other victims of the crash. For months, he was known only as an “unknown hero” with uncommon valor.

Williams’ selfless act reminds us of that higher and noble calling: to place the needs of others before ourselves.

Leaders take risks. Harriet Tubman was born into slavery around 1820 and lived on a Maryland plantation in Dorchester County, about 90 miles east of our nation’s capital. She was a field hand charged with hard labor such as chopping wood, driving oxen, and plowing fields. She suffered terrible abuse at the hands of various owners until one day she resolved to escape. Using the North Star as her guide, she walked over 90 miles to Philadelphia through all weather and difficult terrain; never far from her mind was the fearful specter of being captured – and the brutal whipping that would accompany it.

After Tubman reached freedom, she couldn’t bare the thought of others enslaved. She risked her life by making 19 trips into the South and she lead more than 300 fugitive slaves to freedom along the Underground Railroad. Those too fearful to continue walking faced the end of Tubman’s pistol and a choice: freedom or death. Not one was recaptured.

While we may not have to risk life and limb for the causes we serve, Tubman’s legacy reminds us that leaders aren’t afraid to stand up for what’s right.

Leaders do much more of course. They listen. They fail. They compromise. They adapt. They inspire. And they recognize the power of celebrating transformative leaders within our community. I believe growing leaders is fundamental to the success of our sector and our ability to create strong, diverse and effective communities. While there is much work to do, Independent Sector promotes leadership in various ways. Our NGen program, for instance, is designed to strengthen the leadership skills and networks of under-40 nonprofit professionals and includes an active cohort of fellows sponsored by American Express. (We are currently seeking fellows for 2011 -- submit your nominee by February 21.) Each year, we also honor an outstanding American for their leadership with or in the nonprofit sector thorough the John W. Gardner Leadership Award. Last year, we honored General Colin and Alma Powell for their tireless commitment to young people, service, and advancing the common good. Many of you have leadership programs as well (please share them with us in the comment section below).

Amid high demand and tight resources, now more than ever we need leaders who are clear-eyed about how we can enhance our capabilities. We need leaders who are willing to take the courageous risks that will help us better tackle social problems and serve communities. We need leaders who focus on the long-term effectiveness of their work while taking steps to get there in the short-term. The IS team and I are thinking hard about evolving leaders within the sector and we need you.