Perhaps you’ve noticed a new kid in town called Wisconsin Family Council weighing in on statewide pro-family issues. Well friends, that isn’t really a new pro-family group. Wisconsin Family Council is The Family Research Institute of Wisconsin with a new name. Yes, as of March 15, The Family Research Institute of Wisconsin officially became Wisconsin Family Council.

The board had made the decision to change the name nearly two years ago. However, in order to avoid any confusion during the three-year long marriage amendment effort, we held off until now.

So, for the past few weeks, we have been going through the name change step by step. We’ve been updating letterheads, answering machines, business cards and logos – and the change is almost complete. In fact, we’re just days away from officially launching our new web site: www.wifamilycouncil.org.

Rest assured, however: the change in our name does not mean a change in our mission. We will continue our work of forwarding Judeo-Christian principles and values in Wisconsin. Our efforts to inform and involve Wisconsin citizens, churches and policymakers in preserving and strengthening marriage, family, life and liberty in the state of Wisconsin are going as strong as ever.

We believe the new name better reflects who we are and what we do. It also works to better identify us as a part of the national state family policy council movement. Here’s a brief update about what we’ve been doing as Wisconsin Family Council.

Right now we have several exciting projects underway. We are taking a hard look at the current divorce laws and the impact of no-fault divorce laws on our families and are working with state legislators to draft divorce reform legislation. Some of that will focus on mutual consent for divorcing couples with children.

We are also developing a series of printed and web-based resources on key issues, such as stem-cell research, abstinence education, and school choice. One major project is publishing and distributing the second edition of a research project we first did ten years ago. Our Wisconsin Index of Leading Cultural Indicators provides empirical data regarding the condition of Wisconsin. The first edition of this publication was very well received, and we believe the updated and expanded second edition will follow suit.

Wisconsin Family Council is also working culturally to strengthen marriage and family. We’ve always believed that an important part in this process of strengthening marriage as an institution and as individual marriages is our partnering with other organizations. We’ve already co-sponsored a pastors’ meeting in Milwaukee, where over 60 church leaders heard from an urban pastor and suburban pastor from Kansas City. Together, these two pastors, one white, one black, have strengthened marriage in general and individual marriages in particular and contributed to a 53% reduction in the divorce rate in Kansas City over the last 10 years.

Just recently, in conjunction with Pro Life Wisconsin, we enjoyed a wonderful Day at the Capitol, where we helped educate and inform more than 100 citizens about how to get involved at the state level.

We know informing and involving churches, citizens and policymakers in the important issues of the day is one of the most important things we do here on a day-to-day basis. In the spirit of that, we continue to do voter education, most recently providing educational materials for the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.

One of our most exciting projects right now is our SALT Ministry. SALT stands for Salt and Light Together. The mission of this member-driven ministry is partnering with local churches to educate, equip and energize congregations to strategically impact our communities, culture and government.

We are committing major resources to this statewide partnership and are really excited about the active network of committed churches and volunteer members who will be working with us to build a firm foundation for future cultural and legislative challenges at the individual community level, as well as at the state and even national level.

As you can see, our name change to Wisconsin Family Council hasn’t changed our work! We’re busily doing what God has directed us to do. Thank you for all the support you have given in the past. We look forward to continuing to partner with you to impact this state for Truth and Righteousness.

For Wisconsin Family Council, I’m Julaine Appling reminding you the Prophet Hosea said, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”