"PASTOR TO RUN 12 MILES FOR ADOPTION AWARENESS MONTH"

"PASTOR TO RUN 12 MILES FOR ADOPTION AWARENESS MONTH"
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> November is National Adoption Awareness Month, and on Sunday, November > 28th, the Rev. Darrell L. Armstrong will do something about it. After he > finishes preaching his two morning services, Pastor Armstrong plans to run > (from 2PM-4PM) the twelve mile stretch from Princeton to Trenton to raise > awareness about the need for more adoptive families in general, but > especially about the need for more black adoptive families.
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> "Every child deserves a loving, caring home in which they can thrive," > said the Rev. Armstrong who is Pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church, a 130+ > year old house of worship in Trenton.
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> "It pains me to know that children of all races and nationalities will > languish and even grow-up in foster care or state placement, longing for a > family with whom to spend Thanksgiving, Christmas or other holidays. The > pain is even more acute when I look at the statistics and realize that the > odds against black children, especially black males, being adopted are so > much greater than any other racial grouping in America," says Armstrong.
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> "This is an epidemic, because it is highly probable that those same black > male children who do not get adopted, will one day populate homeless > shelters, get sucked into the vortex of crime, and feed America's > military-industrial complex. We must change this trend!"
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> Armstrong, himself a product of Los Angeles County's child protective > service system, is a ardent and vocal child advocate who is committed to > raising awareness about the world's abused, abandoned, neglected and > displaced children.
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> He is founder of the National Association of Foster Children, Inc. and > Board Chair of the Shiloh Community Development Corporation (SCDC), both > of which are 501(c)3 non-profits working to prevent child abuse by > strengthening families.
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> Armstrong will start his run on the steps of Miller Chapel, which is on > the campus of Princeton Theological Seminary. He will conclude the run on > the steps of the Shiloh Baptist Church in Trenton. He'll wear an official > Olympic jogging suit and carry an official Olympic Torch, both of which he > received in 2001 when he was chosen to be an Olympic Torchbearer for the > 2002 Winter Olympic Games.
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> He is seeking individual and corporate sponsors to sponsor a motivational > book which will be given to foster children throughout the region. The > book entitled, "Snapshots of a Foster Child" is an auto-biographical look > at Armstrong's life growing up in foster-care and kinship-care in Los > Angeles and how he and his three younger brothers were all displaced from > their mother and never reunified nor adopted. He plans to do FREE > workshops and seminars with youth in placement about the emotional and > psycho-social issues they deal with by being in care!
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> Capital Health System and the Trenton Marriott are among several > organizations and individuals who have already sponsored dozens of books. > Armstrong is asking individuals and corporations to sponsor a book per > mile.
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> "This run is both about raising adoption awareness as well as building > bridges between Princeton and Trenton. There is a divide between Princeton > and Trenton and I want to help bridge it," said Armstrong.
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> Armstrong is well positioned to be a bridge-builder between the two > communities. In March, 2010 he marked his tenth year of leading his > Trenton congregation and in May, 2010, he was elected the first > non-Presbyterian member to the Board of Trustees at Princeton Theological > Seminary.
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> You can sponsor a book for a foster/pre-adoptive youth by purchasing > on-line at www.VirGenice.
> "November is Ntl. Adoption Awareness Month...www.VirGenice.org"
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