Press Kit - CAFO SUMMIT 2017

Christian Alliance For Orphans

C A F O S U M M I T M E D I A K I T 2 0 1 7 cafo.org

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“Christians at their best have always been known as a people who rise to ‘defend the fatherless.’ It’s thrilling to see the myriad ways that Christians today are re-earning that historic reputation. Nowhere is that growing movement more visible or vibrant than at Summit.”

- Jedd Medefind

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TA B L E O F CO N T E NT S + ABOUT CAFO

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+ CAFO SUMMIT 2017

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+ SAMPLE NEWS STORY

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+ APPROVED QUOTES FOR USE

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+ APPROVED IMAGES

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+ K E Y S TAT I S T I C S

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+ C O N TA C T

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A BOUT CAFO The Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) powerfully connects more than 650 member churches and unites over 190 respected organizations through joint initiatives that inspire and equip Christians to effectively live out the Bible’s call to care for orphans and vulnerable children. It is through several key initiatives that these members are connected, empowered, inspired and equipped.

cafo.org

CAFO Initiatives CAFO’s National Church Ministry Initiative exists to motivate, equip

CAFO’s OVC Research and Best Practice works to elevate the quality

Orphan Sunday is a catalyst for

and connect local churches nationwide,

of care for children worldwide through

U.S. and in 85 countries worldwide.

in their efforts to grow effective,

the annual OVC Research Symposium,

Orphan Sunday is the chance to grow

sustainable orphan, foster care and

webinars, issue white papers and other

hearts for orphans in you church and

adoption ministries.

resources, we help CAFO members

home through free resources, ideas,

apply the best available research and

videos and more to grow each church’s

models to their daily service to children.

Orphan Sunday event.

CAFO’s National Foster Care Initiative works toward the day when there are more Christian families

CAFO’s Student Initiative is a

waiting to receive foster children than

one-of-a-kind experience for students

children waiting for a family. The NFCI

to embed themselves into, learn

not only inspires involvement – it also

from, and make connections in the

connects emerging church ministries,

CAFO community of organizations

networks and families with the best

and individuals, with distinctive and

models and resources nationwide.

specially crafted elements intended

CAFO’s Global Movement Initiative invests in emerging leaders

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only for our college audience.

CAFO Summit is an annual

worldwide, providing technical

conference that inspires and equips

support, leadership training and more

Christians to care for orphans with

to ultimately allow the local church

wisdom-guided love by convening

in every nation to be known as the

2,000+ attendees from all 50 states and

primary answer for the global orphan

from 30 nations to collaborate, learn

crisis.

and restore.

awareness and action across the

Jedd Medefind Pre sid e nt

Jedd believes that love for orphans

reentry to global AIDS. As described

transforms. Both personally and

by the Harvard Political Review, these

through the example of countless

reforms “fundamentally changed the

others, he’s seen that lives are turned

government’s strategy for improving

upside-down when Christians reflect

the lives of the downtrodden…”

God’s heart for orphans through adoption, foster care and global orphan care. This kind of love transforms not only orphans, but also those who open hearts and homes to them. Churches can be transformed as well, moving the entire community beyond self-focused religion to self-giving faith. Finally, when a watching world sees the Gospel embodied in this way, onlookers are transformed as well. Desiring to spur this kind of transformation through the

Previously, Jedd held a range of posts in the California State Legislature. He also helped establish the California Community Renewal Project, which strengthens nonprofits in some of the state’s most challenged communities.

He has worked, studied and served in more than thirty countries, with organizations ranging from PriceWaterhouse in Moscow to Christian Life Bangladesh.

Church, Jedd serves as President of the

Jedd has written many articles and four

Christian Alliance for Orphans.

books, including Upended and Four

Prior to his this role, Jedd served in the White House as a Special Assistant to President George W. Bush, leading the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. In this post, he oversaw reform efforts across the government to make community- and faith-based groups central partners in all Federal efforts to aid the needy, from prisoner

Souls. His most recent book, Becoming Home, offers a short yet meaningful exploration of how families and communities can embrace vulnerable children with wisdom and love through adoption, foster care, mentoring and more. Jedd Medefind and his wife, Rachel, live in central California with their five children.

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C A FO S UMM IT 2 0 1 7 On May 4 and 5, thousands of foster and adoptive parents, orphan advocates, students, pastors and leaders from every U.S. state and more than thirty nations will converge at the 2017 Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit, hosted this year at Brentwood Baptist Church in Nashville, TN. Their ultimate goal: to see Christians rise as the answer for kids in foster care and orphans worldwide.

There is no better learning opportunity for adoptive and foster parents and those considering it. Likewise, nonprofit staff, pastors and lay leaders committed to serving vulnerable children in the US and globally will also find rich workshops, connections, potential partners, resources and more.

cafo2017.org Location:

2017 Speakers

Brentwood Baptist Church

• Arturo Barrientos

7777 Concord Road

• Ruth Haley Barton

• Advocacy

Brentwood, TN 37027

• Bishop Aaron Blake

• Building Church Orphan Ministries

• Steven Curtis Chapman

• Child Welfare Professionals

Schedule:

• Robby De Luzuriaga

• Continuum of Care

CAFO2017 is two full days, Thursday, May 4 to Friday, May 5 with pre-event intensives on Wednesday, May 3.

• Brian Fikkert

• Engaging Effectively for Foster Youth

• Araceli Flores

• Engaging Effectively for Orphans

Registration: Full Registration March 1 -March 31 Members – $150 Non-Members – $200

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• Dr. Sharen Ford

110+ Workshops in the following tracks

Worldwide

• Belay Gebru

• Family Preservation

• Randall Goodgame

• Hague Training

• Peter Greer

• Help for Adoptive & Foster Families

• Jane Kansiime

• Leadership Forums & Roundtables –

• Jedd Medefind

CAFO Organization Members Only

• Russell Moore

• Loving Children with Special Needs

• Nelson Paulino

• Maximizing the Impact of Your

• Dennis Rainey

Ministry

Late Registration: After April 1

• Kondo Simfukwe

• Pastors & Church Leaders

• Lysa Terkeurst

• Prayer and Praise

Members – $175 Non-Members – $225

• Sandeep Thomas

• Research & Trends

• Curt Thompson

• Serving Children Aging Out

• Brittany Underwood

• Soul Care

• Carlos Whittaker

• Strengthening the Family

Deep Dive Intensives

Kids Summit

For the complete CAFO Summit

At the KIDS Summit, children ages

experience, attendees may join a day

4-10 will plunge deep into rich

early for a pre-conference Intensive

learning and experiences…allowing

Session. These day-long interactive

you the freedom to engage the

workshops are designed to help you

CAFO Summit as you always

dig deep with experts in the field.

have. Children will experience two days of biblically-based teaching,

• Becoming a Trauma Competent Caregiver • OVC Research & Best Practice

activities, and fun … opening young eyes to ways they can care for the fatherless at any age.

Symposium • Foster Voice

$85 (1-2 Children)

• Starting, Scaling and Sustaining

$60 each additional child

• Collaborate, a forum for Global Leaders

Vi ce Pres i d ent for Engagem e nt

Elizabeth Wiebe is the Vice President of

an Orphan Care Ministry in Your Church

Elizabeth Wiebe

Children will be joined by a special

Engagement for the Christian Alliance

guest artist Randall Goodgame,

for Orphans where she loves to watch

Slugs and Bugs

families and the local church transform as they show God’s unfailing love to orphans and vulnerable children in

Exhibits & Sponsors

Student Summit

their communities. Elizabeth works to

Summit also features concerts,

This year also welcomes a new

among Christians and child advocates

movie premiers, special resources

addition to Summit, specifically

around the world through a variety of

for adoptive and foster families,

tailored to university students who

best-practice initiatives and the annual

more than 100 booths and exhibits,

are invited to join the first annual

CAFO Summit.

a marketplace of global arts and

College Summit. This one-of-a-

crafts and bookstore, and a host of

kind experience allows students

other opportunities. Ultimately, all

to embed themselves into, learn

of this is designed to inspire, connect

from, and make connections in the

and equip families and churches to

CAFO community of organizations

become communities known for

and individuals. The College

adoption, foster care and global

Summit features distinctive

orphan initiatives.

and specially crafted elements intended only for our college audience. $49 Student Summit (Friday ONLY)

provide connection and collaboration

Prior to this role Elizabeth served in the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives under President George W. Bush where she spearheaded outreach and organized trainings for faith-based organizations nationwide. She received her BS in English Education and Masters of Music Education and thoroughly enjoyed teaching junior high and high school for a short season before moving to Washington, DC.

$80 Entire CAFO Summit 7

Tending to Your Inner Life in Long Journeys of Justice and Mercy

February 24, 2017 By: Jedd Medefind Justice. Inner life. Our minds naturally sort these ideas into

recognition, pure-hearted idealism, or sincere ache at the

opposing categories. Outward versus inward. Deeds versus

world’s hurt – may propel us for a time. But eventually, they

thoughts. Action versus contemplation. But this separation is

will be outstripped by the world’s great hurt.

deadly, for the two can never long survive apart.

To paraphrase the book of James, an “inner life” that

promised. This abiding is mostly unseen, like an oak sinking

produces no outward works is already dead. But just as

its toes deep into hard earth; it is as mysterious as the way

surely, actions of justice and mercy not rooted deep in the

a tree’s phloem heaves water upward from roots into leaves.

inner life will soon perish, too.

Abiding is all gift and wonder; undeserved, grace.

The truth is, most any work of justice and mercy will be

Yet somehow, we also choose it. We must participate in

harder and longer than we imagined at the start. One little

cultivating that deep-down life, just like any good farmer

thing after another, the weariness and disappointment can

tends to his crops even though he knows that only

suck idealism dry, leaving our noble dreams limp like corn

Something beyond him can actually make them grow.

stalks in drought.

Saints throughout history have found there are small, humble

What can sustain us when the rain stops? Here’s a simple

choices that irrigate the soul. These practices draw our

truth: if we have no Source beneath the surface, we will

roots down: disciplines of solitude and silence, Sabbath and

eventually run dry.

simplicity, memorizing Scripture and chosen thanksgiving,

Any other source of nourishment – whether yearning for 8

“If you abide in me, you will produce much fruit,” Jesus

and other habits practiced mainly out of view. They nurture

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a hidden life that, in time, rises upward into fruit we can see

carrying heavy loads. It is the one way to see our giving

and others can taste.

dressed always in sincere love.

Here is a simple fact: modern life tends to desiccate our

If we desire to give others what they most need, what we

inner life, from always-on technology to relentless activity in

most need is an inner life that drinks deeply of Christ. Justice

both work and play. Cultivating the inner life requires cutting

and the inner life grow only together.

against the grain of culture and even our own habits. It cannot be done without a clear vision for both why and how.

To gain understanding of specific habits and practices that cultivate a deep, vibrant inner life in Christ, the annual

A vibrant inner life is vital if we hope to persevere in long

Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit, held on May 4 and 5

journeys of justice and mercy. But there is something even

in Nashville, Tennessee will explore both why and principally

worse than quitting: it is to persist in giving, yet without

how we can cultivate our inner life, especially in the thick of

love. We may continue to serve, but the light has left our

ministry, parenting, healing and serving amidst our world’s

eyes. When this happens, the hurting person we touch feels

hurt.

only cold philanthropy. We may meet her physical needs, but our labors for her no longer whisper to her that she is of matchless value.

There is no better learning opportunity for adoptive and foster parents and those considering it. Likewise, nonprofit staff, pastors and lay leaders committed to serving vulnerable

The greatest need of every orphan…every foster youth…

children in the US and globally will also find rich nourishment

every struggling parent…every human soul…is not merely to

through the series of workshops and experiences devoted

be tended. It is to be loved, and to know that they are. That

to justice and the inner life. There are also opportunities and

happens only if the little girl sees our eyes light up when she

rooms set apart to engage individual and corporate practices

enters the room; only when the single mother knows we are

that feed and refresh deep down.

wholeheartedly present as she shares her story; only if the juvenile delinquent hears tenderness and respect in the way we pronounce his name.

That kind of love is not something we can simply put on. It

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Ultimately, the CAFO Summit is designed to inspire, connect and equip families and churches to become communities known for adoption, foster care and global orphan initiatives and to thrive in long journeys of justice and mercy.

cannot be faked for long. It rises only as fruit of a vibrant inner life, roots sunk deep into God’s love and drinking daily of it.

That is the one wellspring. It is the only sure way to persevere amidst the hurt and disappointment that always come. It is our only hope of keeping light hearts while 9

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“There is tremendous value to a Summit like this, as people gather together to say, ‘How can we best show God’s love to orphans here and around the world through our lives, our families and our churches.’”

- David Platt

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APPROV ED Q U OTES Please feel free to use any of the following quotes in your coverage for Summit.

“It is also worth noting that the field of

“If we hope to persevere in long

“The Summit is an amazing experience.

orphan care, foster care and adoption

journeys of justice and mercy, we must

A place of enthusiasm, of information

enjoys a rare unity and strategic

grow down before we grow upward.”

- it’s like drinking from a fire hydrant -

leadership – led by the Christian

- Jedd Medefind

there is so much information.”

Alliance for Orphans (CAFO). CAFO

President, Christian Alliance for Orphans

- Kay Warren

field, all working together to inspire and

“It is thrilling to see Christians come

“I’m high on the Summit...Mutual

equip Christians for effective response

together in such a powerful way.

encouragement, input, inspiration, hope

for vulnerable children. Unified efforts

Throughout history, Christians at their

and ideas.”

like that bring far greater impact than

best have been known for the ‘pure

- Crawford Lorrits

when organizations work in isolation or

and faultless religion’ that cares for the

competition.”

orphan in distress, We join at Summit

- Evangelical Council for Financial

to learn how to live out this call wisely

Accountability (ECFA)

and well.”

facilitates shared initiatives involving many of the best organizations in the

- Jedd Medefind President, Christian Alliance for Orphans “Scripture tells us that God is a Father to the fatherless and loves to set the lonely in families. The Gospel says that’s

“How can you not look at Summit and

exactly what He did for us, too. So

see there’s definitely a movement of

when Christians embrace an orphan or

God going on?”

child in foster care, we’re just giving a

- Steven Curtis Chapman

small, humble reflection to the way God

5-time Grammy Award winning musician

first loved us. When that happens, no one is left unchanged.”

- Jedd Medefind President, Christian Alliance for Orphans

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APPROV ED IM AG ES Any or all of these images are available for media and press use. For full-resolution images, please contact Karl Dinker at karl@cafo.org.

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K E Y S TATIS T IC S If we are to communicate with humility, credibility, and integrity, Christian orphan advocates must both accurately understand and carefully present orphan-related statistics. Failure to do so undermines the strength of our advocacy and can misguide the actions that organizations, churches and individuals take on behalf of orphans. Meanwhile, an accurate grasp and communication of the true nature of the need provides a strong foundation for an effective, wellfocused response.

One of the greatest weaknesses in the global orphan estimates is that they include only orphans that are currently living in homes. They do not count the estimated 2 to 8+ million children living in institutions. Nor do current estimates include the cast number of children who are living on the streets, exploited for labor, victims of trafficking, or participating in an armed conflict.

To learn more go to cafo.org/ovc/statistics

Key Statistics Total estimated number of orphans worldwide: 150 Million

Average age of U.S. children awaiting adoption: 7 years, 7 months

Estimated # that have lost only their mother: 34.5 Million

Over the past decade, 179,719 children from around the world were welcomed into families in the U.S. through intercountry adoption.

Estimated # that have lost only their father: 101 Million Estimated # of “double orphans�: 17.6 million Estimated # of children on streets or in residential care: 2-8 Million Number of U.S. Children awaiting adoption: 101,840 Number of U.S. Children adopted 2013 (with public child welfare agency involvement): 50,608

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6441 inter-country adoptions took place in 2014.

Inter-country Adoption has decreased 72% from its high in 2004 due primarily to restrictions by sending countries.

Top 5 sending countries in 2014 were China, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Haiti, and South Korea.

Number of caring adults it takes to make a life-long difference for an orphan: 1

ALL IT TAKES IS ONE

Follow the Conversation

CO N TACT

#CAFO2017 For more information, resources or to schedule an interview with Jedd Medefind, President of the Christian Alliance for Orphans, please contact:

21,604+

@christianalliancefororphans

Karl Dinkler Christian Alliance for Orphans karl@cafo.org 407.496.3885

8,711+

@orphanalliance

cafo.org cafo2017.org

1,463+

@orphanalliance

@orphanalliance

@orphanalliance

Interviews available with CAFO President Jedd Medefind from March 8 to March 26.

Medefind formerly led the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives for President George W. Bush. His most recent book is Becoming Home: Adoption, Foster Care and Mentoring – Living God’s Heart for Orphans

@ChristianAllianceForOrphans

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