SLO LIFE Dec/Jan 2020

When did you get introduced to First 5? I had been assisting First 5 in
the drafting of their children’s bill of rights when the executive director
position came open. It just felt like the right opportunity at the right time.
And, it also didn’t require me to give up all of my broad-based kind of
perspective on things, because pretty much all my projects had more than
an organizationally affiliated kind of focus. And, so, it’s very diversified
sort of assignment. First 5 itself is the same way. The only thing that binds
it all together is the age stage, zero to five. It’s a program that is statewide
and is manifested in local programs in all fifty-eight counties. And our job
is to be stewards of public investment in public tax revenue from tobacco
tax, a fifty cent per pack tax, which was an initiative—Proposition 10—
that Californians voted for twenty years ago.
What’s it like to do this work? I’m so lucky to work with the staff at First
5, all of them. And, additionally, to work with the broader community
of partners in San Luis Obispo County who work on issues related to
kids. It’s been such an amazing learning experience, and a humbling
opportunity to see the kinds of things people in this community are
doing to try to lift the lives of local kids. And, because we get to work
in so many different aspects of their lives, we get to spend our days with
incredibly talented and dedicated pediatricians, preschool teachers, family
advocates, CASA volunteers, people at department of social services, and
other parents. It’s really pretty extraordinary, and also a little bit sobering,
because despite everyone’s best intentions, there’s still a ton of work to do
all the time. It’s just never ending.
And, why is the focus on those first five years of life so important? Well,
I think it’s a more straightforward answer than even ten years ago. There’s
a lot to it, but I’ll start with the science. There’s a lot of science that’s come
out in the last, let’s say, two decades, that shows what we’ve all known
somewhat anecdotally as parents raising children; during those first five
years of life, a lot is happening with children’s brain development. And,
when positively reinforced, it provides a sort of launching pad for life.
And when children suffer or struggle during those early years, it makes it
that much harder to fully thrive. So, it’s this unique moment in time, an
opportunity to, as a community, as a family, as parents, to prioritize the
best possible start. Because, in the end, all of us are better off, our kids
are better off, our community is better off, when we all thrive, when we
all have a shot at living a better life and growing up to contribute to the
greater good.
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46 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | DEC/JAN 2020