Anaheim : Conference on Children Will Open on Thursday

Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund, will deliver the keynote address at noon Thursday for the 67th annual conference of the Assn. of Junior Leagues Inc. in Anaheim.

The 3-day conference, titled “Advancing a Children’s Agenda,” will focus solely on children’s issues, such as the crisis in the foster-care system, homelessness and hunger, intervention in child abuse, the declining status of children in American, promoting self-esteem through art, and the role of volunteers in promoting federal and state action.

In collaboration with the Children’s Defense Fund, a national advocacy organization for families and children, Junior Leagues have worked for child welfare reform, homeless families, adolescent pregnancy prevention and child care.

Other speakers will include Jeanette Dunckel, chair of the Foster Care/Adoptions Policy Board, California Children’s Lobby and the Children’s Research Institute of California, and Cynthia Robbins, executive director of Children NOW, a child advocacy organization in Los Angeles.

The conference will be held at the Anaheim Hilton and Towers, 777 W. Convention Way in Anaheim.