About Us...
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OUR CONCERN

In recent years, we have seen a serious spiritual, moral, and cultural decline in America. The traditional concepts of faith, family, and freedom are under attack. There is a sustained effort to devalue human life, redefine family values and standards of decency, undermine parental authority, and remove expressions of faith from our public schools and institutions. Here are some examples of how this is happening in America.

Abortion: Approximately 50 million unborn babies have been aborted in the U.S. since the U.S. Supreme Court decision of 1973 known as Roe v. Wade. That is an average of 1.5 million/year. Some of those were within seconds of delivery (partial-birth abortions), and 22% of all pregnancies now end in abortion.

Marriage: America’s divorce rate is the highest in the Western world. Forty percent of first-time marriages and 50% of all marriages in America now end in divorce: up from under 10% in 1960. Cohabitation before marriage is common, involving 50% of couples in America. In addition to becoming "optional" and "disposable", marriage is now also in danger of becoming redefinable in the campaign to legalize so-called "marriages" between same-sex partners.

Children in the Family: Forty percent of all babies were born outside of marriage in 2007, a 25% increase from 2002 and up from only 5% in 1960. As a result, 33% of our children are being raised in single-parent homes -- up from only 9% in 1960. These children often suffer from lower academic achievement and higher rates of sexual abuse, STDs, drug dependency, crime, and poverty than those being raised in two-parent families.

Pornography: This is a cancer in our society that causes an estimated 50% of divorces and leaves a train of ruined men, exploited women, abused children, disease, crime, and often violent death.

We are deeply concerned about these threats to our values and to our families. We want to help turn the tide, but we often feel alone. We cannot remain silent!

OUR MISSION

That is why we have founded the Valley Family Forum. We are committed to renewing the spiritual, moral, and cultural vision of our Founding Fathers. We are dedicated to building faith, family, and freedom in our homes and in our communities. We help fight for pro-family policies in the Valley, in Richmond, and in Washington DC. We work closely with other groups like Focus on the Family and The Family Foundation of Virginia to achieve these objectives. Above all else, we seek to honor God and pray that He would guide and bless our efforts. Together, we can make a difference -- one voice, one person, one vote at a time.

OUR ORGANIZATION

The Family Forum is led by a director, task force coordinators, pastors and business advisory councils, and a growing network of Valley families, working together to promote to promote the following basic principles:

1) Sanctity of Life: We believe that all life is sacred, for the born and unborn. Abortion is America’s holocaust, and Roe v. Wade should be overturned.

2) Sanctity of Marriage: We believe the two-parent family provides the best security for children. Marriage is a unique relationship between a man and a woman, and deserves every encouragement as the basic building block of our society.

3) Education and School Choice: We support the effort to achieve better results in the public schools. In addition, parents who choose a private or home school option for their children should be eligible for tax credits or scholarship assistance.

4) Freedom of Religious Expression: We believe everyone has a constitutional right to express his/her faith at any time and place without fear of censorship. This includes a student’s right to pray and to speak with others about his/her faith.

5) High Standards of Decency: We believe families deserve support in their efforts to protect their children from pornographic material. We will work with schools, libraries, and businesses to help monitor and control such materials, including on the Internet.

6) Church and Community Outreach: We believe every church is called to be a city on a hill and has a God-given responsibility to use its influence in the public arena. We will work with lay leaders to inform and mobilize our community on policies that affect faith, family, and freedom.

If you would like more information about the Forum and how you can participate, call 438-8966 or e-mail family@valleyfamilyforum.org.