Michelle Obama announces OFA's next phase: Organizing for Action

First Lady Michelle Obama announces Organization for Action, a non-profit organization that will build on the volunteer network and infrastructure of President Obama's campaign apparatus to continue supporting his agenda over the course of his second term'and potentially beyond.

If we want to finish what we started and truly make that change we believe in, we can't stop now. And that's why today I'm proud that our friends and supports are launching Organizing for Action, the next phase of our movement for change. Supporters like you will be the heart of this organization, because for the past six years you've done something so much bigger than elect a president: you've given an ordinary people a place in our democrat process again.

The mission of the new organization, the first lady said, is "to build on the work we've already done by training and empowering the next generation of leaders and supporting the grassroots organizing that you want to do on the issues that matter most to your communities and our country."

Obama 2012 campaign manager Jim Messina will be national chairman of the new OFA, but the first lady said the group's mission and activities will be shaped by its membership. The new OFA will be separate from the Democratic National Committee and it will be structured as a 501(c)4. That will allow it to accept unlimited contributions, but officials tell NBC News that the donations will all be reported, albeit voluntarily.

Organizing for Action will be a central topic of discussion on Sunday as 4,000 former campaign staff and volunteers gather in Washington for an "Obama Campaign Legacy Conference." The conference will be available online if you want to watch from home.

Yesterday, in a possible sign of how the new OFA might engage in issues, Messina sent an email encouraging Obama campaign supporters to promote President Obama's new gun control proposal.