This is an archive page.  The links are no longer being updated.
REMARKS BY:	TOMMY G. THOMPSON, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
PLACE:		The United Way of New York City's "Knickerbocker Circle", New York, New York
DATE:		November 14, 2001

It's wonderful seeing so many men and women who are so deeply committed to making New York an even greater city than it is already. Your generosity is a testament to your love for this great city and your concern for the well-being of hurting people and important causes. Let me thank you for all you have done and all you continue to do to make New York City unique in America - indeed, unique in the world.

The United Way is a truly American institution. The United Way is typical of our country's spirit of innovation. It enables people and companies to contribute to their preferred charities in a simple and efficient manner. It presents them with hundreds of options. And the United Way then provides the funds in a responsible and accountable manner.

As President Bush recently said, the United Way is "a great American institution of charity and compassion." And you are setting the standard for the United Way at the beginning of this new century.

I also want to thank you for your tremendous partnership with the New York Community Trust in developing the September 11th Fund, which has now collected more than $250 million for the victims of the attacks and their families and for those dislocated or newly jobless because of what occurred.

The United Way offers hope even as it responds to pain. For all of us, that pain became very personal on the morning of September 11th. Many of you likely lost friends and loved ones on the terrible day. Let me extend my personal condolences to you. I am so very sorry for your loss.

I came to New York twice in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. To see the devastation firsthand is something I will never forget. But it was memorable not only because of the scope of the destruction our enemies inflicted.

What I remember most is the people I met. The police and firefighters and EMS workers, the public health officers and physicians and technicians - all of them have reminded a new generation of the meaning of heroism, loyalty and devotion.

As the smoke rose and the buildings fell, they would not be moved. And in their refusal to forsake the fallen, they moved all Americans.

As the President said last week in Atlanta last week, "We have gained new heroes: Those who ran into burning buildings to save others, our police and our firefighters . Those who battled their own fears to keep children calm and safe -- America's teachers . Those who voluntarily placed themselves in harm's way to defend our freedom -- the men and women of the Armed Forces."

And, said the President, "We join in thanking a whole new group of public servants who never enlisted to fight a war, but find themselves on the front lines of a battle nonetheless: Those who deliver the mail -- America's postal workers."

The arena of heroes is growing as the people of our great country respond courageously to the threats facing all of us. And we are all appreciating the sacrifice and commitment of our heroes more and more.

Recently in my great home state at a Packers football game, someone held up a sign that said, "Green Bay loves New York." And in Missoula, Montana, I'm told there's a bumper sticker that reads, "We are all New Yorkers."

When the Twin Towers were struck . when the Pentagon was hit . when a jetliner crashed in rural Pennsylvania . every American came under attack, and war came home to all of us.

That war is being waged on two fronts. One front is in Afghanistan, were the brave men and women of our armed forces are carrying our battle to Osama Bin Ladin and his cronies and to the Taliban.

We are fulfilling the words of Winston Churchill, who said during the early days of World War Two, "We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival."

We have come to know that heart of suffering. But we also know the heart of compassion. And from it, we are drawing our inspiration and our hope.

That's especially important because there is a war here on the homefront. And you are in the frontlines of a different kind of force - what President Bush has called "the armies of compassion."

It's remarkable that for so many years, we've debated about whether or not we need to have the capacity to wage a two-front war. We never guessed that one of those fronts would be in New York or Washington or anywhere else that Americans live and conduct their lives.

Heroism comes in different forms. It is defined differently by circumstance and need. Sometimes it means working amid rubble without sleep or food, hour after hour.

But sometimes it means quietly meeting at a breakfast table like the one before you this morning, giving what you can for those who need it most.

You are heroes, too. And on behalf of the President of the United States, let me thank you for what you are doing to rebuild New York.

That rebuilding is not just physical. It is more than repairing structures. More profoundly, it is about healing lives - mending broken bodies, comforting wounded spirits. That's what the United Way is really all about. That's what you are really all about.

In about one hour, I'm opening up a major national conference on mental health. It's being sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services and is bringing together leaders in the field of mental health from across the nation. The United Way supports mental health work and ministries of all kinds, and I thank you so very much for it.

That's also what my Department is committed to doing. We have been at the center of our government's efforts to safeguard America against bioterrorism and fight the anthrax attacks to which we've been subject.

Our adversaries thought they could grind our government to a halt by sending some letters laced with anthrax to Capital Hill. Well, they were wrong. Our government is functioning splendidly.

In fact, when one of the buildings was temporarily closed, Congress met elsewhere. I know - they came and held a hearing in my building. Imagine that - I had to host them while they grilled me. Even for a guy from a place like Wisconsin, where we're courteous to everyone, that was a bit much.

The terrorists also sent anthrax to the media. Well, the last time I checked, Tom Brokaw is still on the air. The New York Post is still being published. And the press is still free all across America.

We grieve for the four people who lost their lives. But we've responded aggressively in providing antibiotics to all who might have been exposed to the disease, and we're doing much more.

We're building our national pharmaceutical stockpile . we're coordinating the entire federal government and are coordinating our efforts with local and state authorities . and we're strengthening our system of food safety.

So, in a word, our government is responding and responding well to the attacks on our nation. But our response is not just federal. The front lines are in the local hospitals and health clinics of communities all over America. In places like my hometown of Elroy, Wisconsin and in places like your hometown of New York.

Those front lines are held by health care professionals . public servants . generous donors . innovative companies . volunteers and counselors. The corporate sector. The non-profit sector. The public sector. All working together and serving together as partners.

Government can't do it all. That's why you are so vital to making sure that needs are met. Let me repeat - your work is vital. It is essential. You are truly American heroes.

But then, public-private partnerships are always important, and I'm applying that principle to the Department of Health and Human Services does. In my great home state of Wisconsin, we made it our standard operating procedure.

Let me give you two quick examples. When we began to reform the welfare system in our state, we worked with companies to get them involved in training and educating people who were trapped in the cycle of dependency that the welfare system fostered.

We wanted corporations to be active in this effort because they were the ones who would be hiring based on the kinds of jobs they needed to have filled.

We also developed something we call "BadgerCare." We knew that lots of people worked and worked hard, but didn't receive health insurance coverage from their employers - and made too much to qualify for Medicaid. So we put together a system of health insurance for which we received support from the federal government . supplied money from the state budget . and asked the people themselves to put in what they could afford.

BadgerCare now provides quality health insurance to more than 90,000 Wisconsinites. It's a partnership of state and federal government working with ordinary people to find a solution that's affordable and effective.

That's what the United Way does so very well. It gives everyone a chance to contribute, to show compassion in a very practical ways. As your wonderful slogan says, it works for all of us.

The spirit of unity that has swept our country is refreshing but it is not without precedent. Not far from here one of my great heroes, Theodore Roosevelt, was raised in a brownstone. He came from an old Knickerbocker family and was born into privilege.

But his father was a man of great compassion who founded a home for orphans and raised funds for the needy. Teddy Roosevelt never forgot the lessons of practical kindness he learned daily from his father. When addressing a group of schoolchildren many years later, he told them, "Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars, but remember to keep your feet on the ground."

You are fulfilling Teddy Roosevelt's charge by your presence here today. Your deep generosity is matched by your generous ideals working through your generous gifts. Truly, you are lifting the eyes of a great city to the stars of hope.

Thank you again so very much for having me here today. May God bless you, may God bless New York City and may God bless America.