Family Advocacy Day 2012 has come and gone. It was amazing to see all the wonderful children and families here in Washington, and we are in awe of the wonderful job they did on Capitol Hill. Our families visited 125 legislators and urged them to keep kids in mind as they consider legislation and work on getting reelected.
Congress will take a break this month to head back to their home districts. Most congressional activity goes on hold as the legislators take the time to recharge their batteries and hear their constituents’ thoughts about how they’re doing. In other words, it’s a great time to follow up on the hard work that our Family Advocacy Day kids began. That’s where you come in.
It’s important that you contact your legislators while they’re in their home district this month. It can be as simple as sending them an email; using our Legislative Action Center you can make your voice heard in less than two minutes. Not sure who your legislators are? You can use the Legislative Action Center for that too.
But you might want to consider meeting with your legislators in person. In person meetings can be more effective than emails – it shows the legislator the level of concern you have for a certain issue if you take the time to meet with them. While there will be fewer “town hall” style meetings because it’s an election year, many legislators will be holding meet-and-greet events and other forums. Most of these can be found on the legislators’ websites.
Of course there will also be reelection events all over your district. Election laws prohibit incumbent candidates from listing campaign events on their congressional websites, but you can use this website to access their campaign pages – simply click on your state to get started.
Finally, Children’s Hospital Association staff is happy to make you an appointment with your legislators or their staff in their district office. Simply contact us and we’ll set up a date and time for you to see your legislator this month.
Our Family Advocacy Day attendees overcame great obstacles to be with us last month. Traveling with special needs kids can be especially difficult. This month, Congress is coming to you – please let them know they need to support programs like Medicaid and CHGME that are so valuable for our kids.
Thank you for your continued advocacy efforts on behalf of our nation's children.
