We are excited to welcome you soon to the nation's capital for our 16th annual National Gathering and Congressional Advocacy Day! This message contains detailed information to help you prepare for your arrival and to participate in our full weekend of education, advocacy, networking, worship and, hopefully, a lot of fun and fellowship too!

We remind you to make your first stop at the Registration table beginning on Friday at 1 p.m. or later in the main lobby of the Doubletree Hotel. There you can check in and receive your name tag and other materials, including information about Lobby Day.

For those able to participate, you are welcome to our Pre-Gathering Event - "Our Call to Speak Up for Displaced People" - organized by one of our co-sponsors, the National Council of Churches. This 1 - 4 p.m. event on Friday promises to offer theological depth related to the EAD theme from a panel of experts. Speakers can be viewed at the link above.

If this is your first EAD experience, we welcome you to a special EAD orientation at 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon. Even if you are an old hand, come and learn specifics about the schedule for the event, how to prepare for lobby day, review materials and the event app, and make some new friends!

Those who have purchased an optional Friday dinner buffet ticket, you will receive it at the registration table. The buffet dinner runs from 5 - 6:30 p.m.

We formally begin our National Gathering with our Opening Celebration with keynote preacher Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Conde-Frazier at 7 p.m. Friday, in the Crystal Ballroom. During our opening, we will carve out time to stand in solidarity with the #MarchforOurLives movement as they mark the anniversary of the Columbine massacre with a #NationalSchoolWalkOut on April 20.

If you haven't already, be sure to download the EAD event app to stay posted on the rest of the schedule and all the latest announcements from us.

Once again, we look forward to seeing you soon. Your participation makes EAD possible!

God bless you and safe travels to Washington!

Rev. Dr. Leslie Copeland-Tune, Director, Ecumenical Advocacy Days and
the EAD Leadership Team
#EAD2018 Congressional Ask: Implement Just Immigration Policies; Confront Causes of Forced Migration

U.S. Capitol

Our world is experiencing massive upheaval and displacement due to violent conflicts, our changing climate and corruption. Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice calls on Congress to act to help the world's uprooted peoples, the majority of whom are children and women. Congress must:
  • Implement just and compassionate immigration policies; and
  • Confront root causes of forced displacement in light of U.S. policy.
We believe that God is with Dreamers, refugees, immigrants, outcasts and people struggling to overcome poverty. God calls us to offer hospitality to the immigrant and the sojourner, and to break down the dividing walls that separate us. Our faith teaches us the importance of keeping families together, welcoming newcomers with compassion and dignity, and aiding our neighbors in need across the world.
We call on Congress to act with compassion and exercise fiscal responsibility by redirecting funding used for deportations, detention and border militarization, and invest instead in our communities and support for refugees while increasing poverty-focused and peacebuilding international assistance to address the root causes of forced migration.
'Remembering Dr. King in a World Uprooted' to Conclude Final Day of #EAD2018 National Gathering 

Dr. King Memorial

On Sunday evening at #EAD2018, a panel of faith leaders will gather to reflect on the importance of the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in light of the theme of this year's National Gathering and the 50th year since his assassination.The event will also include artistic, video and other tributes.

More information will be included in the EAD event app and on the website in the coming days.
Capitol Hill Prayer & Public Witness to Begin
Congressional Advocacy Day 

EAD Public Witness
Public Witness from EAD 2017 at the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill.

A public witness is being planned for 9 a.m. on our Lobby Day, Monday, April 23 at the United Methodist Building. It is located a few blocks from our staging location on the Hill at the Church of the Reformation, next to the Supreme Court building and across the street from the U.S. Capitol. Our team is finalizing the plans for this event to kick off #EAD2018 Lobby Day visits and more information will be shared at the National Gathering and via the event app.
#EAD2018 to Provide Free WiFi in Session Areas

Mobile Devices

Our team has worked closely with the Doubletree Hotel to enhance participants' experience at our National Gathering. We are pleased to announce that this year we will have free WiFi available to our participants in all the meeting rooms of the conference. This includes the Crystal Ballroom where the plenary events occur, the Washington Ballroom (Exhibit Hall), the rooms in the Presidential Hallway, throughout the other meeting rooms on the first floor of the hotel and rooms on other floors where workshops and state breakouts occur.

More information about WiFi access will be provided on site at the hotel and via our event app.
#EAD2018 Workshop Times Now Available in Event App

Workshops

The nearly 50  issue and skills workshops  to be held at #EAD2018 can now be viewed based on their scheduled day and time in the EAD event app. The app schedule includes breakdown by issue area and title. More detailed descriptions and speaker listing for the workshops are available on our website.

The event app will always have the most updated schedule listings and other information for the National Gathering. Make sure get the free download from the iTunes or Google Play stores.
Free-Will Offering Designees Identified for #EAD2018

Collection Plate

Each year the leadership team of EAD designates organizations engaged in the work of justice to receive the fruits of an offering taken up during our Sunday Worship. For #EAD2018, the recipients chosen are:
  • The St. Thomas Recovery Team, which is working in the wake of hurricane devastation in the Virgin Islands to raise funding to transport chronically ill and senior patients to medical appointments, and
     
  • No More Deaths, an organization working to end death and suffering in the Mexico-US borderlands through civil initiative: people of conscience working openly and in community to uphold fundamental human rights. 
Read more here about the work of these organizations and the planned issue offering, as well as a separate offering in support of the EAD Scholars fund. You will also find links to donate online.
Child Care Options for #EAD2018 Participants

Puzzle

We recognize that some participants in our National Gathering may have need of child care services during their time at EAD. While the Doubletree Hotel does not offer child care services, they have recommended to us some options for our participants, which we pass along to you below. Note that EAD is not able to provide child care or recommend any particular child care service. If you have questions, please contact the services listed for more information.
Alternate Housing Options; Getting Around D.C.

Washington_ D.C.

Our hotel room block at the Doubletree is sold out.  Those still looking for last minute housing, be sure to check out our alternate housing page for more information. You may also find affordable hotel accommodations using online travel websites.

While in our nation's capital you may wish to take the time to explore the monuments and museums downtown, check out Cherry Blossoms on the Tidal Basin, or visit Old Town Alexandria. Be sure to check out your options for sightseeing and public transportation to help you get around. Information on restaurants nearby to the hotel can also be found in the event app.
Get the #EAD2018 App for the Latest Schedule & Updates
During the National Gathering the #EAD2018 Event App will be your go to information center with all the latest information about schedule, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors, Ask information, resources, networking with other Gathering attendees and more.

Download the Event App
Ecumenical Advocacy Days | webmaster @advocacydays.org | (571) 882-9730
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