April 14, 2016
COMMUNITY ACTION MONTH 2016
veteranMAY MARKS THE 52ND ANNUAL COMMUNITY ACTION MONTH
Since 1964, the Community Action network has put a face on poverty while advocating for those who don't have a voice. The network has also provided much needed services and opportunities to millions of low-income people and families.
 
Community Action -- through agencies just like yours -- has provided and will continue providing opportunities for low-income people to enter the middle class and reach for the American Dream. We have helped many individuals, seniors and families by improving their quality of life and offering support in their efforts to become more secure financially. Our programs help develop lives and communities with programs including Head Start, Individual Development Accounts, financial education and job training. The Community Action network also works for community economic development, affordable housing, heating assistance (LIHEAP), assisted living for seniors, and much more.
 
Community Action has always been proactive about telling the success stories and showing the results of people who have overcome poverty. Recently this effort has been more critical as Community Action Agencies and communities nationwide grapple with budget cuts and a widening income gap. Rising homelessness, hunger, and unemployment rates affect every state, city, suburb, and rural community in our nation. Telling our success stories and sharing our results will be especially vital throughout this year. 

This year's celebration of Community Action initiatives and successes will run throughout the month of May.
veteranPARTNERSHIP ENCOURAGES YOU TO SPREAD THE COMMUNITY ACTION WORD
The National Partnership encourages all CAAs to tell their story as often as possible throughout the year, particularly during National Community Action Month. The Communications Department within the National Community Action Partnership has created supplemental documents as guidance for publicizing the start of Community Action Month. These include a sample news release and sample proclamation for local elected officials that may show their support, as well.
  • The sample news release is used for announcing and promoting your upcoming Community Action Month events. The release is meant to be customized to best reflect the messages your CAA wants to communicate and the target audience you want to reach. Feel free to develop additional news releases - focusing on new CAA programs/services, local poverty data for your community, or recognition of staff, volunteers, corporate/community partners.
  • The sample proclamation is designed to be provided for governors, mayors, city council members, commissioners or other elected officials to proclaim May "Community Action Month" in their local jurisdictions. In the past, CAAs have adapted the sample proclamation with their local information and submitted it to their local officials for consideration. Procedures for submitting the proclamation should be available from the offices of your local elected officials and you can modify it to meet their requirements. 
Both templates are available for download through the following links:CAM 2016 Press Release and CAM Proclamation

  
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Community Action Partnership | 1140 Connecticut Avenue, NW | Suite 1210 | Washington | DC | 20036