(via e-mail)
May 8, 2007

Greetings from the Brethren Witness/Washington Office:

Congregations Encouraged to Respond to “Mother’s Day Call to Action”

Elgin, IL (May 7, 2007) - The Association of Brethren Caregivers encourages congregations and Church of the Brethren members to support a “Mother’s Day Call to Action” of the Children’s Defense Fund by contacting their congressional representatives the week of May 6-12 and asking them to reauthorize the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

In 1997, Congress created SCHIP to provide insurance for children whose parents work but can't afford health insurance of their own. Today, 46 million people live in the United States without adequate health insurance and 9 million of those are children. SCHIP comes before Congress again this year to be reauthorized to continue. The Children’s Defense Fund is initiating this Mother’s Day Call to Action to encourage elected officials to provide comprehensive health and mental health coverage to every child in America.

“Children are dying in America because they lack health coverage and adequate access to doctors and dentists,” states a bulletin insert from the Children’s Defense Fund promoting the Mother’s Day Call to Action. The insert includes the stories of three children who died in 2007 due to lack of adequate health care. The bulletin also notes that of the nine million children in America without health insurance, 90 percent are living in working households and the majority are in two-parent families. A PDF file of the bulletin insert can be downloaded from the ABC website at http://www.brethren.org/abc/advocacy/kids%20family.html.

In April, both the Association of Brethren Caregivers and the Church of the Brethren General Board signed up to support the All Healthy Children Act with the Children’s Defense Fund. The initiative to support the need for better health care for the uninsured is not a new effort for the Church of the Brethren. For the last four years, ABC has been a partnering organization to promote “Cover the Uninsured” and “Covering Kids & Families.” These programs of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation call attention to the need for health care insurance in America and help register children and family for low-cost or free health insurance.

“Many families in the United States today are struggling to provide their children with adequate health care,” states Kim Ebersole, director of Family and Older Adult Ministry for ABC. “This Mother’s Day, when we traditionally honor our mothers, we have the opportunity to ‘do for the least of these’ (Matthew 25:40). Let us put our faith into action by contacting our Senators and Representatives and urging them to reauthorize SCHIP. The ‘gift’ of healthy children, and healthy families, would be a present mothers (and fathers) would cherish.”

To make your voice heard in support of the SCHIP program, contact your Senators and Representative by calling (888) 226-0627; visiting www.childrensdefense.org/MothersDayCall; or e-mailing www.childrensdefense.org/MothersDayEmail.

The Children’s Defense Fund (www.childrensdefense.org) has a bulletin insert and a full-page flier to help congregations get the word out about this Mother’s Day Call to Action. These materials are most easily available at ABC’s website at http://www.brethren.org/abc/advocacy/kids%20family.html. The Children’s Defense Fund also has a 39-page “Toolkit for Faith Communities” as a downloadable PDF file that can be accessed by visiting http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=healthy_child_takeaction#toolkit. Additional resources for Church of the Brethren members to consider regarding SCHIP are available from at ABC’s website under its advocacy materials for “Cover the Uninsured.”

ABC provides publications, educational and faith opportunities that encourage the Church of the Brethren to do caring ministries as the work of Jesus Christ.

Brethren Witness/Washington Office Contact Information

If you have questions on these or other issues, contact the Brethren Witness/Washington Office at the address below. We would love to hear from you!

Brethren Witness/Washington Office Action Alerts are sent out as important issues arise. Forward this alert to others! To add an e-mail address to our list, contact us at:

Brethren Witness/Washington Office
337 North Carolina Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20003
Local Phone: 202-546-3202
Toll Free: 1-800-785-3246
Fax: 202-544-5852
E-mail: washington_office_gb@brethren.org