Shriver Meets with LBJ

Mr. Poverty

50 years ago, on Feb. 1, 1964, Lyndon Johnson asked Sargent Shriver to lead the War on Poverty.

Hear Their Momentous Conversation
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Shriver Speaks at Press Conference

Inspiring Action

During his life, Sarge's words inspired people to action and called for peace. Read and search all of his speeches and public appearances.

Read and Search Sarge's Speeches
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Sarge w/ JFK

Sarge's Legacy

Living through one of the most turbulent times in American history, Sarge's work touched the lives of millions of people. Through his work he helped lift up those among us giving them hope and opportunity.

Read More About Sarge's Legacy
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Sarge PC Camels

Sarge's Work

Sarge's peacebuilding methodology is still shaping our world today. Through the five components of his method, people and communities are striving to build a more just society.

Learn More About Sarge's Methods
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Shriver Walking With Children In Israel

About SSPI

Launched in 2006, the Sargent Shriver Peace Institute has sought to carry on Sarge's work by increasing awareness of his life and teaching his peacebuilding methods to help others respond to the challenges facing our society.

Learn More About SSPI
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Sarge on Street Desolation2

Saints In Our Midst

America Magazine, "In January of 2011, Sargent Shriver died after a long and good life of extraordinary service, courage and faith. I believe he was a saint in our midst..."

Read the America Magazine Article
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The poor are the same everywhere -- and they need the same things everywhere. They need help -- but before they need help, they need hope. And before they can have hope, they need self-respect. And before they can have self-respect, they must enjoy the same opportunities the rest of us have had. This is why helping is not easy. It is not just a matter of conscience money. It is not just a matter of handing out money, jobs, or materials. Helping the poor is a sequence of things -- like building a monument. It is a sequence first of providing opportunities that the poor can seize voluntarily; then, building their self-respect, then giving them new hope.

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50 years
1964 2014

The War on Poverty Celebrates 50th Anniversary

On February 1, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson tapped Sargent Shriver to design and lead the United States in an “unconditional war on poverty.” If you were faced with this towering challenge, what would you do? Explore what Sarge said and did, and the values that guided the decisions he made.

Read More About the War on Poverty

SARGE'S LEGACY

“I can think of no American alive today who has touched more lives for the better than Sargent Shriver. Reel off the names of the organizations he inspired, led, or created and you have a sense of his multiplying legacy.” Bill Moyers, 2004.

Sarge's Legacy

SARGE'S METHOD

Sargent Shriver’s historical legacy combines a spiritually grounded idealism with deft political realism and a gift for public administration and social innovation that is alive today. Explore the methodological keys to Shriver’s pursuit of human development, dignity, and peace.

Sarge's Method

ABOUT SSPI

The efforts of the SSPI are dedicated to commemorating Sarge’s legacy, as well as to creatively applying the principles that guided Shriver’s work (empathy, respect, service, sacrifice and humility) to contemporary peacebuilding endeavors.

About SSPI

Blog

Jan 12

2014/15 Shriver Program Undergraduate Fellows Announced

by University of Chicago Institute of Politics

CHICAGO – The University of Chicago Institute of Politics today announced the 14 Fellows selected for the Sargent Shriver Program for Leadership in Public Service, a new initiative for UChicago undergraduates to gain practical training in public service leadership. The inaugural Shriver...

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In the News 0
Oct 06

Classic Sarge

by Jamie Price

Earlier this morning I was reading, A More Beautiful Question: The Spiritual in Poetry and Art, a book by my friend, Glenn Hughes, and the chapter on “Art and Spiritual Growth”  made me think of Sargent Shriver. I think about Sarge often, of course, and like the rest of his friends and...

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What Would Sarge Say? 0
Sep 19

The Sargent Shriver Program for Leadership in Public Service

by University of Chicago Institute of Politics

CHICAGO – The University of Chicago Institute of Politics today announced the Sargent Shriver Program for Leadership in Public Service, a new initiative to engage a select group of third-year UChicago undergraduates in a yearlong program of practical training in public service leadership....

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In the News 0
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Featured Media

The Shriver Family

See pictures of the Shriver Family from throughout the years.

View the Gallery

The Life of Sargent Shriver

Tom Brokaw narrates a retrospective on the life of Sargent Shriver.

Watch the Video

LBJ Asks Sarge to Lead War on Poverty

Listen as LBJ challenges Sarge to take the reins of the war on poverty.

Hear the Audio

A GOOD MAN

BY MARK K. SHRIVER

In this intimate portrait of an extraordinary father-son relationship, Mark K. Shriver discovers the moral principles that guided his legendary father, and applies them to his own life.

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SARGE: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF SARGENT SHRIVER

BY SCOTT STOSSEL

This exhaustively researched, authorized biography depicts Shriver’s connection to the historical events of the last century—the Great Depression, World War II, JFK’s assassination, the Cold War, and many more. Sarge gives us a complete account of Shriver’s life, as well as thoughtful commentary on the Kennedy family, the Peace Corps, and United States and world history.

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AMERICAN IDEALIST

BY BRUCE ORENSTEIN

Peace Corps, VISTA, Community Action, Head Start, Legal Services for the Poor, Youth Corps, Job Corps, ... Sargent Shriver invented a string of social initiatives that shaped an era and dared millions of young Americans to live out their ideals.

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