Children's advocates are needed now, more than ever. Become your congregation's Key Advocate today!

Minnesota is home to 1.2 million children between the ages of 0-17, but too many of them haven't experienced "Minnesota nice."

• An estimated 152,000 of our children live in poverty.
• 87,000 lack health insurance coverage.
• 68% children under the age of six have one or both parents in the workplace, yet 54,000 of those children still live in families whose annual incomes don't cover all their basic needs.

These statistics defy what the prophets and sacred texts of the great faith traditions teach about justice, compassion, and caring for children.

Every Minnesota congregation needs a Key Advocate
If you care about children and take the teachings of your faith tradition seriously, you're ready to be a Key Advocate. iCAN has over 400 Key Advocates building awareness of children's needs and leading Minnesota faith communities in doing social justice advocacy at the legislative level.

Key Advocates:

• receive initial training in grassroots political advocacy;
• receive regular updates about issues that impact Minnesota children through iCANS's newsletters and Wednesdays4Kids e-mail alerts, and other sources;
• contact their elected officials through phone calls, e-mails, letters, and one-on-one visits, to tell them to support policies that improve children's lives and oppose policies that hurt children;
• speak out for children suffering neglect, poverty, or abuse, through pulpit announcements during worship services, or through their congregation's worship bulletins or newsletters;
• share iCAN information and resources and guide other members of their congregations in doing legislative advocacy;
• share and keep the concerns of children before the congregation's leaders and decision-makers, through events like the Children's Sabbath and the Blue Ribbon Campaign/National Child Abuse Prevention Month;
• model compassion for all children to their congregations and communities;
• work to create a child- and family-supportive atmosphere in their congregations and communities;
• pray for children everywhere.