Governor Christie gives the Points of Light 2013 National Conference on Volunteering and Service Keynote Address on June 21, 2013. (Transcript Below)
Governor Christie: I came here to Washington, DC on the first day of summer from New Jersey not because I don't have anything to do back home. I came here today because I so admire what all of you do and what you stand for. And as a governor of a state that has now been devastated by the worst natural disaster in its history, I can tell you that the efforts of volunteers in our state were indispensable and continue to be indispensable to us being able to recover completely as a state. And so while there will be times when some people will ask you why do you do what you do, why do you believe in it as much as you do, do you really think you make a difference, if you've got any of those naysayers and cynics in your life, tell them to send me an e-mail. I'll tell them exactly what you do and how valuable it is to real people across this country. And this knows no partisanship. When I showed up in a devastated town in New Jersey, I can tell you this: no one asked me if I was a Republican or a Democrat. When a volunteer showed up from Iowa or South Carolina or from Missouri or Michigan no one asked them if they were a Republican or a Democrat. When people are suffering, we're Americans. And so while there are some who will see politics in everything, you know, 25 foot waves coming onto your shoreline don't know partisanship. They don't knock down Republican houses or Democratic houses. They don't wash away the memories of just Democrats or Republicans. They don't take the lives of one party or another, and I think if this country wants to move forward and reach our full potential we better start thinking that way about most things and not just about emergencies.
