USA WEEKEND presents First Lady Laura Bush's exclusive essay on Make A Difference Day

Once a year on Make A Difference Day, people of goodwill and good heart unite for a common cause -- to tend to the needs of others. The turnout is always impressive. But why?

Part of the answer can be found in a poll once taken of volunteers in many fields. One question was, "Why did you volunteer?" More than a fourth said, "I volunteered because I was asked."

This was just the case in Quincy, Mass., where 25 women were inspired to mail requests to friends asking for help for 350 needy children at an under-served school. The response was tremendous. Those who had been asked answered with such generosity that the women were able to host a "literacy party" for the entire student body -- and 194 family members. Every child went home with a new book, and money was left over for a $500 donation to the school's media center. These women are among the Make A Difference Day honorees recognized in this issue. (See Altrusa story, page 8.)

Make A Difference Day also began as a request for people to help -- one day a year in October. Each year, millions turn out. In the words of another first lady, Lou Henry Hoover, they want to help "those who desperately want to help themselves but can find no practical way to do so."

One such compassionate American is a teenager named Jennifer who wrote to President Bush: "Today I experienced poverty firsthand. My friend pointed out a family. He said to me, 'Do you see those people over there? I served them at the soup kitchen last night. Those kids haven't slept in a warm bed in all of their lives.' An issue of this magnitude requires monumental amounts of compassion, labor, and the perspiration and dedication of the capable members of society. I am not just writing this letter to you. I am also joining organizations, helping in soup kitchens, arranging counseling and offering my hand to all that need it."

Mighty words from a young volunteer. Jennifer could have spent her time with her friends, but instead she made a commitment to help strangers.

Others who set aside private time for the public good are honored every April by Make A Difference Day. I am proud to join in recognizing them.

Among them is a couple from Bryan, Texas, who motivated 65 people to restore a dilapidated 120-year-old church whose small congregation is mostly elderly and poor. People came from miles around to help. While volunteers pitched in to paint, clean and repair the church, a pianist played hymns and the church members sang. The event organizer said, "I went to Russia, Switzerland and France last year ... and Make A Difference Day was the highlight of my year."

What motivates you to volunteer? For me, helping a child read and learn is one of life's greatest rewards. That's what motivates my work as first lady. And this October, I plan to practice what I preach and volunteer to teach in a public school during Teach for America Week.

One person alone cannot do everything. But one person alone can do something.

One of the best volunteering stories I know is about a woman named Helen Goodrum who earned an award for her outstanding volunteer efforts at age 88. At the awards ceremony, she told my husband the following story:

When Helen was 81, she was mugged. She was knocked to the ground and robbed. For eight months, a broken pelvis kept her from her volunteer work. On her first day back to the hospital, a staff member told Helen how angry he was about what had happened.

Helen just smiled and said, "Only one man knocked me down. Two came and picked me up."

In life, it's not what knocks us down that matters. It's the people who help us up. Each of us can be one of those people.

On this 10th anniversary celebration, I salute everyone who works to make the United States of America a better place to live and realize our dreams. The people who participate in Make A Difference Day are proof that Americans are compassionate people. Volunteers are among America's true heroes.