How little did I know at age three, in 1948, that at age 64 I would still be an unpaid lobbyist. Trying to get laws past to help myself and others. In 1948, I told then Congressman Dirksen that we needed a Peace Corp so that a thousand young people would be like a thousand points of light and help others help themselves. It took over 12 years for the law to pass and we have yet to pass the full law. The Peace Corp was to have counted for your military service. There were some in this country that could not see that some day there might be a war or wars that some who were drafted or accepted the call to service in our Military might not agree with the particular conflict and wuld have gladly volunteered for the Peace Corp instead in order to help prevent future wars from occurring. Within a few years, we had one of those wars. The Vietnam war was played out in protests in our streets as some felt it was not a just war and burned their draft cards in protest. The original Peace Corp concept was to allow a choice of two kinds of service without any hassle of why one made the choice. In 1948, the Church of the Brethren voted in Brethren Volunteer sevice and lobbied Congress to let it be accepted as an alternative service instead of the military. The 'campaign' was headquartered in our home in McPherson, Kansas and led by my oldest sister, Theora Hardy. In this busy atmosphere, I wrote a crayon letter and put it in an envelope that ended up in our church lobby office in Washington, D.C. I received the call and Mr. Eby had the Congressman with him and put him on the phone for me to explain my letter. I am now blogging and trying to get laws and investigations done that not only affect me personally but affects everyone on different matters related to Health care and social programs. My whole life has been one lobbying effort after another. Head Start, Brown vs the Board of Education of Topeka, Mental health rights, Family Preservation Plan, i.e. CASA: and work safety and rights of employees and now my current efforts. Lobbying is not just talking to lawmakers, it involves all kinds of efforts and suggestive techniques. It doesn't always work if you put "I" into it. Many of the efforts are anonymous or done through other people that may actually gain the fame for the effort. I had been told that I should run for office. We are all called for different jobs, it seems that mine is to lobby and write and advocate for the laws from behind the scene. One in this situation has to resign themselves that their "work" may be well known but your personal part in the completed job may never be known. I do not take full credit for anything that has been accomplished as many have had a real part in these things happening. Those in power should not forget that even though their name is the one applauded that they are there because of the efforts of all those 'behind the scenes' that caused the event or law to be passed. It is only a few lobbyists that get lots of attention and are paid well and put on lavish parties for the lawmakers. Most of us are working behind the scenes, etc. I ended up with a career that permitted many of my rulings to become part of the civil code of our country and these were upheld by higher courts. Yet unless one delves into all the documents, one rarely knows who wrote the original. I know that there is someone in this universe that does know and I pray what I have done is helpful to humanity. It very sad to witness the utter lawlessness that is on-going in Washington now where government contractors are given monies and monies are blatantly stolen from the taxpayers and nothing is done- no investigations, no restitutions. As an innocent child, I was looking for a world where everyone was happy and lived in harmony by helping each other be self-sufficient. There is another entity out there that hates the Creator and seems to want to destroy everythng good and wonderful. My Bible says that someday that guy will be bound up and after a thousand years sent into nothingness. In the meantime, we struggle in the good fight to love one another as HE loves us. Linda Joy Adams, Linda Joy Hardy Adams
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