Proclamation 5240—National Community Leadership Week, 1984

Local communities form the foundation of our Nation. Our Federal system of government is based on the determination of the people of the United States to govern themselves, to the extent possible, in small entities capable of responding quickly and effectively to particular community values and needs.

Qualified and well-trained leadership at all levels of government, but particularly in our local communities, is essential to the maintenance and strengthening of our democratic institutions. Throughout the United States, many communities have established programs to help citizens identify and discharge the responsibilities involved in leadership positions assumed in their own communities. These programs have produced thousands of talented and well-trained local leaders who are aware of the unique problems confronting their communities and are well-prepared to devise innovative solutions for those problems.

The Congress of the United States, by House Joint Resolution 574, has designated the week beginning September 9, 1984, as "National Community Leadership Week" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this week.

Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week beginning September 9, 1984, as National Community Leadership Week.

In Witness Whereof I have hereunto set my hand this third day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and ninth.

RONALD REAGAN