'Milk Party' calls for prioritizing children at Fort Pierce rally

FORT PIERCE — The state’s “Milk Party Tour” made a stop in St. Lucie County Wednesday night to rally support to prioritize children’s issues and pressure politicians to change what the movement’s leaders call a poor record on funding of childhood education programs and health care.

During the rally, which drew over 900 people from around the Treasure Coast, David Lawrence Jr., movement president and retired publisher of the Miami Herald, condemned the lack of money for five key areas vital to the success of children: quality health care, treatment for children with special needs, quality pre-kindergarten opportunities, mentoring programs and the education of parents.

“We’re failing a remarkable number of children in Florida,” Lawrence said, referring to statistics that say Florida regularly rates in the bottom half of states in child health and state government education spending. “We have our priorities way out of whack in this state and nobody ought to stand for it.”

Lawrence urged attendees to demand a change in policy from politicians and state leaders in order to ensure a bright future for Florida and the rest of the country.

“This isn’t about raising taxes. It’s about making children our state’s highest priority,” Lawrence said. “It’s never about ‘those children.’ It’s about ‘our children.’ ”

The movement’s stop at Fort Pierce Central High School is part of a series of citizen-led, nonpartisan September rallies conducted across the state, leading up to the first gubernatorial candidate debate on children’s issues at the University of Miami slated for Oct. 16 between Alex Sink and a still unconfirmed Rick Scott.

According to tour leaders, over 800,000 children in Florida are without health insurance, including 25,000 on the Treasure Coast. The state spends around $7,000 a year per student on K-8 education, but spends more than seven times that much annually to house a juvenile in a secured facility.

For teacher Cathy Powers, the movement’s message hit home.

“I’m on the floor everyday with children and I have kids that come to class not knowing colors, shapes, the different body parts and even their own names,” said Powers, who teaches voluntary pre-kindergarden at Garden City Elementary in Fort Pierce. “We need to make champions out of our children.”

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