First Lady Laura Bush
Honorary Chair
President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities

Welcome to the 2003 Coming Up Taller Awards!

When I was a child in Midland, Texas, I went to the public library every chance I had. There I would let my imagination journey far and wide through the magic of books. Today's young people are able to have adventures of which I only dreamed.

Their horizons can be expanded in a recording studio in Chicago; a music practice room in Raleigh or New York City; a dance studio in Kansas City, St. Louis or Santa Ana; a museum in Oakland or Philadelphia; or, yes, in a library in Boston, Butte, or Los Angeles. They are taking part in some of the many after-school and out-of-school activities across the country that we are honoring today with Coming Up Taller Awards.

Coming Up Taller brings national recognition to organizations which provide exceptional experiences for education and personal development through the arts and humanities. Planned especially for children whose prospects for enrichment out of school may be limited, these programs encourage young people to discover their talents and chart their futures.

Key to the successful growth of these young individuals are their adult leaders. Professionals in their respective crafts, they serve as gifted guides for young people exploring new, demanding, and exciting creative territories. These adult mentors are our valued partners in guiding and inspiring the next generation of our country's leaders. We salute them today.

I am delighted to join the members of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities in celebrating the Coming Up Taller Award recipients for their extraordinary work to enhance young people's lives, their communities, and this country.