Fender Community:

Hi. I am a Northern California Singer Songwriter who has played drums for 40 years and guitar for 20 or so. I hope you find the attached press release of interest. It is a campaign I started to encourage volunteerism and to help our communities.

You can also go to www.guitarinternational.com for additional information regarding my campaign.

My main electric guitar is an all original blonde Squier "51.

Brian Gardner
P.O. Box 503, Santa Rosa, CA 95402 ~ 707-586-1032 ~ 2323bgardner@comcast.net


SCHOOL BUS DRIVER / SINGER/SONGWRITER STARTS UNIQUE CAMPAIGN TO PROMOTE COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERISM


Rohnert Park, CA – When Rohnert Park resident, Brian Gardner heard President Obama calling for citizens to get involved in volunteerism, Brian, a school bus driver and performer in the Bay Area decided to start a campaign to answer the call by the President and to celebrate his 40 years in the performing arts. His campaign is a unique way of encouraging citizens to get involved in their communities.

“I’ve started this campaign to encourage people to invest in their communities by devoting at least 1-hour of their personal time to some type of volunteer activity. It’s called: The 1- Hour - A - Week – Campaign for Community Betterment. Everyone can devote at least 1 hour a week towards the variety of actions that come under the heading of volunteerism. One can read to a child, visit a retirement home resident, or just be a friendly companion to a senior citizen. When taking a walk, one can bring a bag along and pick up trash. People are always needed to do a variety of tasks for community service organizations. Pick the one you would like to volunteer for, give them a call. I am sure they will gladly take your 1 hour a week of donated time! The “list” of things that people can do is virtually endless.” said Gardner.

“With the population for the greater Bay Area about 7.1 million people, what gets me excited is that if only 1 percent of Bay Area residents start volunteering 1- hour a week, that would represent thousand of hours of volunteerism that were not done last week, that were done this week. With that level of activity, our communities would be totally different places to live in, to work in and to raise families in. I am aware that many people are already doing much more than 1 hour a week. The people I am trying to reach with this campaign are those that aren’t doing any. I firmly believe that everyone can donate 1 hour a week to such activities – no matter how old one is, no matter what religion, race or creed one follows. This is a campaign that everyone can be a part of!” said Gardner. Gardner performs at retirement homes, volunteers at his church and does talks at community groups and radio interviews to get the message out about his 1 - Hour - A - Week Campaign for Community Betterment.

“If only a small percentage of those that hear about my campaign start to do their 1 hour a week – it will mean that as an individual, as a performer, I was able to make a positive difference! I believe that everyone can do the same. And it starts with doing just…1 hour a week.” Gardner said.
To contact Brian Gardner:
The 1 - Hour - A - Week campaign, P.O. Box 503, Santa Rosa, CA 95402
707-586-1032 ~ 2323bgardner@comcast.net

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Best Regards,
Brian Gardner
Songwriter
The Manzanita Acoustic Band on My Space

Hey Brian

Does this mean I have to fly out to CA on a weekly basis.

Just joking.

I fully appreciate the demise of community mindedness. England in particular is suffering deeply from a mindset of society of one. Crime is pretty much rife as family and community values of generations past are slowly deteriorating.

Well done mate.

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No no and no

Hey - you did not post a name so I will just call you mate.

So.....Mate...Here's what I want from you for as an early Christmas present...

Please simply (without leaving England (not a joke I am serious!) both start doing YOUR 1-hour a week of community work and spread the word in England as often as you can or care to. You see mate this campaign I started has no dues, no paperwork and I DO NOT own the copyright on this idea and don't want to - what I want is to see this idea and people doing...1 hour a week to spread freely. Hell go on your local radio station and talk about this - get yourself interviewed in the local newspaper - talk about it when you perform...have fun with this and realize that YOU are important and never forget that YOU alone can change the world into a more positive placer to live...YOU or anyone else CAN do this.

Brian my name is Nick but mate will do fine. I'm just wiping the sweat off my brow recovering from trying to calculate the cost of all them airline tickets.

Anyway I'm on the case and have been for a few years now I suppose. Whilst in a particularly bad low fifteen years ago I decided my life was worthless. Major dilema, how do I make it worthwhile? I came to the conclusion that the only way to give my life any meaning was by helping someone out, everyday. Hey presto two months later depression was long gone. Family life and commitments have led to me being more home focused. I still get a little glum every now and again, I'm only human not some constantly grinning automaton. So all I do is go and make someone smile a bit. Gets my mind off my problems and puts em in perspective.

Anyhow consider me re-commited to helping folks and in the longrun helping myself. Your not alone mate.

Nick.

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No no and no

i read on your website something about obama........

im just kidding.......... sorta

Nick:

Sorry to hear about you sad times - but you know there is an added benefit for people starting to do my campaign - they take their attention off themselves and spend some time helping others or their community and what do you know their problems sort of diminish.

So glad you are helping yourself by helping others - please keep me posted on how it's going...

Brian Gardner