ELCA Advocacy shares their March 2024 updates. Our post focuses on Lutheran Advocacy Ministry Arizona’s highlights. Read the full post here at ELCA.org.

LAMA hosted its 3rd annual Lutheran Day at the Legislature on January 18. Gathered were 125 Lutherans and friends representing 24 of Arizona’s 30 legislative districts to hear remarks from Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, Arizona’s longest-serving senator, Lela Alston, Bishop Deborah Hutterer and others, and then met with their legislators about hunger, the water crisis, equal access to voting, and the need for low-income housing. Participants met with more than 40 lawmakers, practicing neighbor love through advocacy and demonstrating that faith is an action word. 

LAMA co-hosted its 2nd annual Anti-Hunger Advocacy Day at the Capitol on February 21. LAMA co-founded the Arizona Anti-Hunger Alliance, a statewide coalition of food banks, farmers, healthy school meals advocates, community gardeners, justice advocates, state agencies and faith-based organizations who share common values – ending hunger! – to educate our legislators and advocate for the more than 750,000 Arizonans who face hunger every day. 

The Grand Canyon Synod Hunger Leaders Network sponsored the 40-40-40 Lenten Challenge, an ELCA Region 2 inter-synod challenge. Participating were 708 individuals in 149 congregations across the five synods of Region 2. Based on the enthusiastic response to the challenge and a productive regional meeting at the ELCA World Hunger Leaders Gathering in February, the Region 2 delegates decided to meet regularly to discern how the five synods might collaborate as church together around hunger. 

The Grand Canyon Synod’s Bishop Deborah Hutterer joined other faith leaders and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle on February 15 to discuss the pressing need for affordable, accessible housing, pressing for the passage of Yes In God’s Backyard (YIGBY), legislation aimed at helping Arizona meet the needs of its inadequately-housed citizens.