by Gerard Balan, Jr.

Forward: This speech placed second In our 1997 speech contest held on November 11th at the Winchester Country Club. The contest theme was: Is Volunteerism a Key to Success? The first place entry will appear in the February issue of 20:20.

Often the most significant accomplishments in our society have been the result of volunteer work done by "ordinary" people who possessed neither power, wealth, nor status. For instance, Louis Braille was a talented musician who was neither powerful, nor wealthy. At the pinnacle of his career, he had an accident; he was rushed to the hospital where the doctors informed him that he would never be able to see again. Certainly, everyone believed his music career was over, but Braille proved them wrong. Refusing to give up all for which he had worked - and wanting to help others in the same situation - he developed an alphabetic system of raised dots that enabled the blind to read by running their fingers over the bumps. The Braille System, which is still in wide use today, has proved wrong societal views that Held the blind are helpless; because the blind can read, they are able to have access to vital information. Although an accident robbed him of his eyesight, Braille was not robbed of his ability to transform societal reality. By committing his life to his cause, Louis Braille has enabled the ignorant to truly "see."

Martin Luther King, Jr., made a revolutionary change by volunteering his life to his cause: bringing the ethnicities together. Modeling after the memorable Ghandi, King rejected the traditional method of bringing about a great change through a violent revolution. Instead, King sought to eradicate hatred through nonviolent protest. Through passionate oratory, he empowered his partisans to fight for equal rights for all. King rallied his supporters to boycott racist businesses and to protest judicial injustices. As King saw it, "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." More importantly, he encouraged his adherents to respond to reprisals with love, rather than with more hatred. King knew his movement eventually would get him killed, but he persevered nevertheless and he not only improved the state of African Americans in this country, but the state of Haitian Americans as well.

The works of Braille and King carry on through organizations that are supported by volunteers. For instance, Braille's work continues through the Lions' Clubs, whose sedulous service and devotion to improving the lives of the blind, has allowed them to participate more in society than ever before. Likewise, the NAACP and the Anti-Defamation League strive to keep Martin Luther King's "dream alive." Had these two men died without volunteering to ensure that future generations remember their works, would they truly be successful?

In further addressing whether volunteering is a key to success, we must discuss the secondary meaning of "key." A "key" is the answer to a puzzle or problem. These two men wished for their work to truly be successful far after their deaths, but how could that happen without people to continue their work? Therefore, volunteers are indeed the "keys" to their success. Who are the keys? We are the keys.

Having seen and participated in charity work done by volunteers in my high school Key Club, I realize how indispensable volunteers really are. Although I organize the service projects that have to be done, the volunteers are the none who graciously perform the manual tasks that are imperative for the services to be carried out. For instance, on my Tutoring Tuesdays for fifth grade students last year, the volunteers were the ones who assisted me in the actual tutoring and in obtaining the visual aids needed to simplify the concepts for the children. When I organized "Story Hour," a program where young children are read to by high school students, the volunteers were the ones who gathered the necessary materials, helped me keep track of the children, and graciously helped me clean up afterwards. Ultimately, as a Key Club member, not only have I realized the virtue of helping others, but I have come to laud the volunteers who are truly the "keys" to our prosperity.

Within the National Honor Society, I have had the privilege of helping to deliver cans to soup kitchens and organizing dances. The NHS is renowned in all schools, particularly since it mobilizes volunteers into a unit that is motivated to better each school and to improve the lives of everyone involved. Truly, without volunteers, the success of the National Honor Society would be nonexistent.

Today, we have been robbed of two of the most influential and monumental volunteers of our time, Mother Theresa and Princess Diana Spencer, as a time when we could least afford to lose them. But we cannot let them die in vain. You may say to yourselves, "what can I do? I am only one." Was not Louis Braille only one? Was not Martin Luther King only one? They each started out as only one and then empowered others to follow. These people vividly have shown us that by volunteering our lives to serving others, our impact is immeasurable. We must be courageous.

Finally, each of us is a key - but what kind of a key are we? I have asked myself this question Many times while preparing for this oratory this evening, but I figured out the answer when one day, my Nephew came to with a tiny, golden key. Excitedly, He asked, "what does it lock? What does it lock?" Recognizing that he had found my Key Club membership key I misplaced a few days earlier, I thought to myself, "it is not what it locks that is important. It is what it unlocks." Our volunteerism unlocks our every success. Thank You.