Announcements

The bill to end child marriage is stalled in the CT Senate.

The House already passed it, and the Governor promised to sign it. If they don’t act by Wednesday, the bill will die.

• Please follow this link for an email campaign targeted at CT Senate President Looney. The Senate President has the power to bring HB6569 to the floor for a vote right now and end child marriage in Connecticut. The session ends on Wednesday and the bill will die if it is not voted upon. Customize the email to let him know you are a JP or town clerk.
• Gather at the Connecticut State Capitol tomorrow (Friday) wearing bridal gowns and veils, with our arms chained and mouths taped, to protest forced and child marriage and urge Connecticut senators to pass HB6569, the simple, commonsense bill that would eliminate all marriage before age 18, no exceptions.

Chain-In Hartford
June 2, 2023 at 10:00 AM
Connecticut State Capitol
210 Capitol Ave., Hartford, CT

Related Links

• On May 3, 2023, the bill passed the House 98 to 45. Hooray! Watch the debate on the House floor. (Trigger warning: some verbiage by opponents of the bill is infuriating – and untrue.)
• Legislative activity in Connecticut to end child marriage, including JPus’ testimony to legislators.
• Information and a link to view JPus’ panel discussion about child marriage in Connecticut.
• Landing page for JPus activity involving child marriage in all of our states.
• Education and training for officiants about child and forced marriage
• How membership voted to join the Coalition to End Child Marriage.

On January 22, 2023, the Justice of the Peace Association submitted testimony to New Hampshire’s Children and Family Law Committee in support of HB34. The legislation would change the minimum age to marry in the state to 18 – no exceptions. Read JPus’ testimony.

February 16, 2023 at 6:00 PM

Join the Justice of the Peace Association and the National Association of Social Workers – CT for an interactive workshop that exposes the harm of child marriage and efforts underway to end it in Connecticut. Esteemed panelists will highlight the social, emotional, and ethical problems connected with child marriage, the need for “brightline” (no exceptions) laws, and what Connecticut marriage officiants, clerks and citizens can do to advocate for change. Read more and registration.

We are excited to announce that the JPus/findaJP website rebuild will be launched on August 12, 2021. The information below is intended to prepare our members so you know what to expect.

Website Off-line

During the new website’s launch, findaJP.com and JPus.org will be temporarily unavailable, starting on Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at 4:00PM. We are planning to be off-line for up to 24 hours. During this time members may not update profiles or renew memberships until the data migration is complete and the new site is live. Your membership is important to us. Please know that as we progress through these last steps, every effort is made to minimize impact on our users and to restore both sites to normal operations as quickly as possible.

We will send a reminder email before the process begins. Again, when the data migration is complete, we’ll send another message letting you know that the new site is live.

Get Ready

This is a great time to review the information you use to login. Please take this time to confirm the email address included in your contact details is current and accessible. If you have forgotten your password, don’t worry. Members can reset their password during login (requires access to email address on file) by clicking the “forgot password” button.

What’s Next

Since we first announced our plan to update the findaJP.com and JPus websites, we expanded the scope of work. Initially the focus was on the inner-workings. We wanted to keep up with current web technology, improve the membership system, and increase security. However, we added a few improvements to the front end, too. While most of the updates still focus on the backend, others will be more noticeable.

New Site Features

• Member Profile Images on findaJP will be larger. Make sure yours is the correct size so your picture doesn’t get distorted. Maximum file size for the image is 1MB and (new) minimum width is 225px.
• Wider Screens and Banners. This means larger fonts and improved readability. Since the site is larger, it uses wider banner images, too. We have new default banners, or you can upload your own custom banner. In fact, if you use a custom banner it will need updating. The maximum file size is 2MB, and maximum width is 1024px. Recommended banner size: 1024px x 250px.
• A Profile Teaser text is a short summary that will appear on the town listing search results. On the current site the first few lines of your About Me are visible. With the new website, you have the option of customizing the text that appears there. Think about how to get couples’ attention. Then, include your message in your profile.
• Enhanced Membership Dashboards. In addition to editing your public profile, reviewing client contacts, and managing your membership, the new and improved member dashboards will also make it easier to preview your profile and access membership services like support articles and discounts.
• Membership Subscriptions. Our new membership system allows automatic membership renewals and other flexible subscription options.
• Highlighted Content. Updated findaJP.com and JPus.org front pages make it easier to keep up with new content including blogs, events, social media, and more.

You can also stay-tuned to this announcement page or JPus’ official Facebook group for updates. Any steps required by members ahead of the migration will be included in that update.

Related Links

★ Help navigating your JPus Dashboard

★ Understanding the difference between JPus and findaJP

★ Make your Profile Shine

★ How to Improve Profile Visibility

Along with the rest of the country and world, I have watched the recent harrowing events unfold, and felt anguish and anger. George Floyd’s horrific murder, and the callousness of the police officers on scene who failed to intervene to save his life, illustrate the most heinous parts of our society.

I believe with all my heart that, in the words of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, “No one is free until we are all free.” Like many of you, I routinely put these values to practice in my daily life. But that is not enough. To make change, each one of us must speak out and be heard — in all aspects of our lives.

In light of this, where does the Justice of the Peace Association fit in? JPus and findaJP were built upon a foundation of love. All love. Quoting MLK again, “We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love…” We stand against racism and discrimination and will work for the change we want to see. We are an inclusive organization that believes in equality of all people. And our activities must reflect these values.

How can our marriage-focused organization be a part of the solution to end racism and discrimination? Our team is finding our voice and determining what steps we should take to do better.

First Steps:

• We strengthened our policies to better reflect our beliefs.
• We are revising the Code of Ethics that all members agree to when they join the Justice of the Peace Association. They are currently in DRAFT form, and we invite members to comment before we finalize them.
• Please view the DRAFT of the revised Code of Ethics and send me an email with your feedback.

Next Steps:

• Formally updating the Code of Ethics
• Implicit bias training for officiants

We also renew our commitment to ensure that our space is welcoming and safe for people of color. We encourage all members of our community to join us in solidarity with our friends and neighbors and to speak out and demand policies and laws that address systematic racism. Some steps we can all take include:

• Join peaceful protests to let your voice be heard.
• Contact your legislators.
• Have conversations. Even if they are uncomfortable.
• Support organizations that address racial inequality. A couple that we like:
  NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Color of Change

I always welcome your calls and emails, but especially during this time. Together we will be better by working for the change we want to see.
In health and safety,
Loretta

Loretta Jay
Managing Member
203.255.7703
[email protected]

Related Links

• Member support article Exploring Our Own Implicit Bias
• The Justice of the Peace Association’s Code of Ethics