A true coming together for children

Last week I helped organize an event held at the Massachusetts State House entitled, "Health, Housing and Hunger Prevention: the Building Blocks of Childhood Success." The idea was to have a bunch of organizations that work in these areas band together to educate legislators and raise awareness about the current need around these issues.

In many ways, it was a typical "Legislative Advocacy Day" up on Beacon Hill where we gave out information and materials, had an educational and inspirational speaking program of experts, provided food, and sought to build relationships with legislators and staffers.  But something about this felt different to me.  In all my years of planning or attending such events, I had never been involved in something so completely collaborative.  Each of the organizations truly checked their agendas at the door and came together to make some noise about children and what children need to thrive and succeed.

This is not an easy feat, especially among such a diverse bunch.  To give you an example of some of the organizations, they included: Health Care for All (the lead organizer), Horizons for Homeless Children, Project Bread, Children's Hospital, Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations, Crittenton Women's Union, Massachusetts Coalition of School-Based Health Centers, Citizens Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), the Massachusetts Medical Society, The Home for Little Wanders, and many, many more.

If you are familiar with politics in Massachusetts (which we take very seriously), you will know what an extraordinary accomplishment this is.  While we all know that none of us (individuals or even organizations) can do this work alone, I admit I haven't had many experiences where I truly felt the impact of many people coming together for the sake of children -- not for the sake of their agencies' agendas, not for the sake of their own PR, not for the sake of saving their own jobs or organizations -- but for the sake of children, who have no voice of their own.  We all know that children can't learn if they are sick, homeless or hungry.  Yet we put extreme emphasis on academic success as if somehow that will cure everything that ails an individual, a family, a community and even society itself.  Of course education is critically important but it is not a panacea.  We need to support the whole child.  We need to support the whole child.  We need to.  We did.  We are.  We will.  We.

Coming together for the Building Blocks of Childhood Success