'Crisis of Values' Awaits This Year's General Assembly

Special to the HERALD
(From the issue of 1/10/02)

With the Virginia General Assembly set to open its 2002 session soon, Catholics from Northern Virginia want to make sure that their representatives consider values that promote the common good and uphold the dignity of individuals and families when voting for or against legislation and budget items.

To this end, advocates from Social Action Linking Together (SALT) and hundreds of parishioners throughout the Arlington Diocese spent the last month communicating with their representatives in what has become a tradition.

SALT held its annual "Breakfast with Legislators" in December.

All Northern Virginia legislators were invited and nearly all of the Northern Virginia delegation was represented at the breakfast, either by the legislator or their aide. Legislators who attended include: Senators Janet Howell and Richard Saslaw, Delegates Jeannemarie Devolites, Kenneth Plum, Marian Van Landingham, and Vivian Watts. Aides for these legislators also attended: Vincent Callahan, J. Chapman Petersen, James Dillard, Kristen Amundson, Brian Moran, Karen Darner, James Scott, Toddy Puller, and Warren Barry.

During weekends in December, parishioners from numerous diocesan parishes filled out SALT’s "Home for the Holidays" message cards and mailed them to area legislators.

"We see homelessness all around us," said Joyce Howard, a member of the Social Concerns Committee at St. Joseph Parish in Alexandria.

Howard worked with her fellow committee members to help hundreds of parishioners from the historic parish fill out "Home for the Holidays" messages to their state representatives.

"Alexandria is often seen as a wealthy community but many people fall between the cracks," said Howard. "We need to be a voice for the voiceless."

Father John McBrearty, S.S.J., pastor, said, "Basically what we are doing is carrying out the vision of Isiah. We all have a responsibility to help others."

Father McBrearty tells his parishioners they all have an obligation to "constantly try to bring about the Kingdom of God here on earth."

The holiday message is simple: At the holidays and afterwards, "Help Virginia Families Make It". Each year the "Home for the Holidays" campaign asks Virginia legislators to support SALT initiatives for the coming General Assembly session. \

Priorities this year include temporary rental assistance, an increase in temporary assistance funding, a pass through of all support funds from the father to custodial parent, and an increase in temporary assistance. The legislators in attendance have agreed to patron SALT proposals in the State House and Senate.

However, just as the legislators praised the "Home for the Holidays" campaign and SALT efforts, they also struck a note of alarm about the coming legislative session. "I think we are going to be facing a crisis of values," said Senator Janet Howell of Reston.

Other legislators reluctantly agreed and told the SALT breakfast attendees that the budget shortfall is so bad that needy families are likely to suffer even more.

Other legislators echoed this concern and said that social justice/social service programs that have helped the poor of the state may likely face budget cutbacks and may even face near elimination.

"The hardest task for SALT advocates and legislators who care about your initiatives may be fighting for what we can preserve," said Howell.

Van Landingham lamented that looking out for the less fortunate among the citizens of Virginia is rarely if ever a popular priority, even during times of budget surplus. "We don’t do much to help during the good times which makes the bad times even harder for those who are less fortunate," she added.

"Thank you for reminding us that as legislators we need to think about our values when we vote," said Kenneth Plum. "It will be hard work but it is necessary. When we cast our votes we need to consider what we value," he stressed. "Sometimes our humanness has us going in the wrong direction," echoed Devolites. "The general public does not understand how the budget works; they think about their own pocket book not whether we are providing basic needs to those in our community," she added.

Area legislators told SALT advocates they must continue to fight for those who cannot speak for themselves. They urged Catholics throughout the diocese to write or call their legislator and voice support for SALT initiatives for 2002.

For more information on how you can be part of SALT efforts call John Horejsi at (703) 255-7074 or jhorejsi@cox.rr.com.

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