Telling Your Child Care Advocacy Story

“Advocacy is simply the practice of telling the story,” says Heidi Hagel Braid, of First Children’s Finance. In a new Exchange Hub video, Hagel Braid shares her thoughts on how to manage the ‘end’ of child care stabilization grants many of us saw with the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

According to Hagel Braid, "advocacy is not about a belief system. It’s not that you are Democrat or Republican. It’s advocacy that’s saying, ’Let me educate you about what these funds did and what difference they made not only for the children in the program who depend on the doors of that childcare being open every day for fostering their development and their relationships with trusted adults, but it also helped people stay employed and have access to benefits.’”

Hagel Braid suggests four distinct audiences for your advocacy efforts:

1. Share your story with your state senators and representatives, “making sure that your legislators understand the needs locally…making sure that those priorities are carried to the state capitol and show up back in your community.”
   
   
2. Share your story with CEOs and large employers in your area “who are feeling the pinch of childcare not being available for their employees.” They need “a dedicated workforce who show up and are productive in their roles because they have reliable trusted childcare for employees.”
   
   
3. Share your story with philanthropic foundations so they carry that same message even if it’s a tiny family foundation in your local community up to a big giant endowed foundation—all of those folks can be advocates as well.
   
   
4. Finally, “don’t forget about families you know being the voices that add to the chorus of how important childcare funding really is.”

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