Photo by Nancy Royden. David Levy, of Hyattsville, co-founder of the Children’s Rights Council, has recently been named to Children’s Health magazine’s recent list of “The 25 Most Influential People In Our Children’s Lives.”

Published on: Wednesday, December 02, 2009

By Nancy Royden

The metro Washington, D.C., area is full of prominent people, and Hyattsville’s David Levy has the distinction of being named to Children’s Health magazine’s recent list of “The 25 Most Influential People In Our Children’s Lives.”

Levy, 73, co-founder of the nonprofit Children’s Rights Council, led the organization for 24 years, and is now working on a book about children of divorce and ways to improve their lives and society as a whole. He is seeking a publisher for the book he expects to complete in five to seven months. He is author of the book, “The Best Parent is Both Parents; A Guide to Shared Parenting in the 21st Century.”

In 1992, the group was founded as the National Council for Children’s Rights, Levy said. It encompasses chapters throughout the United States and other countries.

“The whole point was to elevate emotional support to the same level as money,” he said. “It’s not just fathers [rights]. It’s a child’s right to two parents. Children with two parents generally do better. If you have two parents, you don’t need a gang.”

Levy joins others named to the list – including environmental crusader Dr. Philip Landrigan; education reform pioneer Geoffrey Canada; singer-songwriter Taylor Swift; first daughters Malia and Sasha Obama; fitness advocate Dr. David L. Katz; Web expert Howard Ganz; Disney starmaker Gary Marsh;  Max Barenbrug,founder of Bugaboo Strollers; Arne Duncan, education czar; and vaccine watchdog Dr. Robert W. Sears, among others.

Levy said the federal government spends $4 billion annually to collect child support, while only $10 million to encourage parenting.

Levy said the children’s organization was established in Washington, D.C., where he had been a lawyer for the Library of Congress for 27 years. Later, the group moved to a location across from The Mall at Prince Georges on East West Highway in Hyattsville. Today it is based in Landover.

The organization started out with volunteers, and Levy often spent his lunch hours doing work on its behalf, he said.

Even though Levy is no longer on the board of directors, he wants to offer resource information to those who request it. He is also an advocate for the group’s “access centers” where children may be safely transferred from one parent to the other parent.

Marcus A. Trelaine, chief operating officer of Children’s Rights Council, said Levy continues to have the interests of children at heart and offers insight to the group, now led by Chief Executive Officer Myrna B. Murdoch. She has held the post since October.

Trelaine said the CRC’s mission is definitely about parents having access to their children, and its employees and board members are looking for ways to improve life for those  they serve and others with no direct contact.

“Gang membership has now become a career path for many people. We’re looking into that,” he said. “Children are joining gangs. They are looking for a stable environment.”

Trelaine said the structure of the family has changed tremendously, from mainly nuclear family to other situations, and some children may need intervention to prevent them from joining gangs.

The current board of trustees of CRC includes Murdoch, Mark S. Inzetta, John L. Bauserman Sr., John L. Bauserman Jr., Teresa L. Kaiser, the Rev. E.F. Michael Morgan and Margaret A. Wuwert.

Murdoch said Levy’s advocacy of the CRC remains appreciated, even though he no longer works for the organization.

“David Levy was a pioneer in the custody revolution. After many years of following the ‘tender years doctrine’ (generally, custody of young children is awarded to the mother) espoused by Family Court, a recognition of the role of both parents in the lives of children became the gold standard, thanks to the efforts of child advocates like David Levy,” she said.

In some cases, parents have used children as pawns, and Murdoch said changes are happening politically.

“The Children’s Rights Council is committed to continuing the push for families to have the right to parent their children. Children must no longer be used as legal fodder in exchange for child support or the right to pay no child support. Legal recognition of the rights of children to have both parents in their lives will be achieved through joint custody laws, currently being drafted in Congress,” she said.

Murdoch looks positively to the future, while being grateful to Levy and others who established the CRC.

“On behalf of all the children whose lives have been positively affected by David Levy and his group of tireless supporters, CRC thanks them all and pledges to continue the progress toward joint custody for most families,” Murdoch said.

To learn more about CRC, visit the organization’s Web site at: www.crckids.org.