Celebrities Join Mayors To Encourage Volunteerism

Photograph of Mayor Bloomberg and Ashton Kutcher by Peter Kramer/AP

Ashton and Demi joined Mike and Cory—Mayor Bloomberg and Newark Mayor Booker, that is—in Times Square yesterday to kick off a volunteerism and service effort called I Participate, which helps citizens find volunteer opportunities near them, as well as Bloomberg's Cities of Service, which will "identify local sectors where volunteers are most needed, match community organizations with volunteers" and share best practices. Besides New York and Newark, other cities and mayor participating are Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, Phoenix, DC, and many more.

Booker said, "We all know that America is not a spectator sport, it's a democracy and we have to get in the game." And Kutcher was wowed by the Cities of Service effort —he Tweeted, "Wow. Just met with 15 amazing mayors from around the country who are working hard to ease the process of volunteering in local communities."

Mayor Bloomberg told the crowd, "We're going to fulfill what President Obama and what the Congress asked us to do. That is to make America a country of service." And later he told MTV, "I sat next to Alicia Keys at dinner two weeks ago. My girlfriend was very jealous, I can tell you that. I don't think her boyfriend was, but that's neither here nor there."