The 2012 National Farmworker Conference, scheduled for May 9-11th, 2012 in Denver, CO, is shaping up to be an unforgettable and historic. A slate of exciting speakers will join our gathering of health center leaders from around the country to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Migrant Health Act of 1962. Highlights include:
Dolores Huerta, Co-Founder of the United Farm Workers
(UFW)
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Former Lieutenant Governor of Maryland and the eldest daughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy
Christine Chavez, the granddaughter of Cesar Chavez and the Program Leader from the Office of Advocacy and Outreach, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Fernando Chavez, the son of Cesar Chavez, of The Cochran Firm, (San Jose, CA)
Also, in support of the National Farmworker Conference, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has issued a proclamation that the week of May 9-11th be honored as Farmworker Health Week. The farmworker population is important because they harvest the food that comes to our table. Their work is is integral to the $28 billion fruit and vegetable industry in the U.S because 85 percent of those crops can only be harvested or cultivated by hand.
If you are interested in learning more about farmworker health and the 2012 conference, you can follow the latest developments on Twitter at #nfhc.