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Welcome to the fall edition of Milestones!
The autumn season for First 5 San Bernardino (F5SB) means elevating literacy in our community. For the second year, we’re promoting the importance of reading to children through the Gift a Kid a Book campaign. We’re excited to share the highlights from our first community event held in Apple Valley and invite everyone to attend the upcoming event in Redlands on November 18. Read more about this exciting campaign in the article below!
In last issues, we provided information about our Kid Safe Summer campaign. Read on to find out how the news media received our guidance on water safety on KNBC Channel 4 and Telemundo Channel 52, hot car safety on KABC Channel 7 and car seat safety on two live segments on Good Day LA Fox Channel 11. Make sure to check out the clips from this excellent media coverage, shared below.
Our featured partner this month is one of our great literacy partners, Reach Out and Read Inland Empire, an organization dedicated solely to encouraging parents to read out loud to their children by incorporating books into pediatric care.
In October, we were proud to partner with First 5 Riverside to sponsor California Association for Infant Mental Health’s conference attended by professionals in the infant mental health field.
Please make sure to read about F5SB’s participation at the resource fair held at the Mexican Consulate in San Bernardino, just one of our many community engagement outreach activities conducted each month, and meet Arminda (Hope) Loewenstein, accountant III, whose interest in serving young children manifests through her work in the fiscal department.
Sincerely,
Karen Scott
First 5 San Bernardino Executive Director
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The Gift a Kid a Book Campaign Returns to Promote Early Childhood Literacy
Through its Gift a Kid a Book campaign, First 5 San Bernardino (F5SB) is helping parents and caregivers encourage a love of reading and learning in our youngest San Bernardino County residents. The fall campaign launched in October and will run through December, featuring information and resources in both English and Spanish.
Children under 5 have many milestones, which families often celebrate with toys, treats or clothing. Gift a Kid a Book introduces the idea of gifting a book instead! These milestones could be celebrating the first day of school,
becoming a big sister, the first trip to the dentist and, of course, birthdays and the holidays.
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Ninety percent of a child’s brain develops by age 5, so it is crucial for us to educate our community on the role books play in a young child’s life. Reading to babies and young children builds a foundation for language and writing skills.
The Gift a Kid a Book message is reaching San Bernardino County residents through digital advertising, radio spots, billboards, community events, publicity and social media. Our campaign webpage, First5SanBernardino.org/reading, features a list of book recommendations by age, a collection of partner resources, reading activities and downloadable bookmarks in English and Spanish.
Additionally, two Gift a Kid a Book Community Fairs have been scheduled this fall in partnership with the San Bernardino County Museum. The Gift a Kid a Book Community Fair at the Victor Valley Museum was held Saturday, October 14, and the Gift a Kid a Book Community Fair at the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands, Calif. is Saturday, November 18, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Event Flyer: English|Spanish.
Potter the Otter made a guest appearance during reading time at the event.
The media is also being invited to a holiday-themed Gift a Kid A Book distribution at Ramona-Alessandro Elementary to reinforce the importance of early childhood literacy efforts.
Check out this highlight reel from our first Community Fair, kicking off in the High Desert on October 14.
Visit First5SanBernardino.org/reading or follow us at @First5SanBernardino for more information.
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Kid Safe Summer Reaches San Bernardino County and Beyond Through Local Television News Coverage
This year, First 5 San Bernardino’s Kid Safe Summer campaign promoted summer safety for children in the water, in the sun and on-the-move! We were able to share our safety messages and tips with San Bernardino County and the greater Southern California region through local media coverage.
In May, NBC 4 Los Angeles and Telemundo 52 aired five segments featuring First 5 San Bernardino Executive Director Karen Scott, on the importance of water safety for young children, specifically active supervision and utilizing safety barriers. The news piece also encouraged parents to learn CPR and enroll their children in swimming classes. Watch them here.
In August, ABC 7 Los Angeles ran a segment on the dangers of leaving children in hot cars. San Bernardino Sherriff’s Deputy Zachary Twardowski explained how quickly cars can reach dangerous temperatures on warm days and how that extreme heat can cause a medical emergency. The stories also featured tips provided by First 5 San Bernardino to help ensure kids are not left in hot cars. Watch it here.
In September, Crystal Montejo from the San Bernardino Department of Public Health (DPH) visited the Good Day LA Fox 11 studios to demonstrate the proper use of car seats during two live morning news segments. She shared information on behalf of the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health and First 5 San Bernardino on how to use car seats correctly based on the age and size of the child. She also explained the importance of following car seat labels for instructions on proper installation. You can watch segment one here, and segment two here.
You can view these stories and other First 5 San Bernardino media coverage on our News page (news/press room/media coverage/2023).
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Partner Spotlight: Reach Out and Read
Reach Out & Read Inland Empire is an organization giving young children in San Bernardino and Riverside counties a foundation for success by incorporating books into pediatric care and encouraging families to read aloud together.
A program of the American Academy of Pediatrics California Chapter 2, the research-proven, school readiness program is based in physician offices throughout the Inland Empire. Reach Out and Read has been a funded partner of F5SB since 2019 with doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants providing guidance to parents on the importance of reading aloud to their young children and giving an age-appropriate book to take home at every well-child visit.
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 According to Reach out & Read Program Coordinator Delesa Barnes, during well-child visits for children ages 6 months through 5 years, the provider starts the visit by giving the child a new, developmentally appropriate book to take home, which over time builds a child’s book collection to 8-10 new books before kindergarten.
Reach Out and Read sites also create literacy-rich environments that may include gently used books for waiting room use or for siblings to take home.
In fiscal year 2022, 158 providers participated and distributed 32,339 books to their patients, further supporting First 5 San Bernardino’s strategic priority initiatives of health and quality learning.
First 5 San Bernardino Supports CalAIMH Conference
First 5 San Bernardino Executive Director Karen Scott provided opening remarks at the CalAIMH conference attended by infant mental health professionals on October 27-28 in Ontario, California.
First 5 San Bernardino and First 5 Riverside recently co-sponsored “Sharing Joy: Where Passion & Meaningful Relationships Take Flight,” a two-day conference held in Ontario organized by the California Association for Infant Mental Health (CalAIMH).
After a pandemic-related delay, over 150 professionals were excited to be back together to rediscover their passion for the work they do in the infant mental health field. The first day’s agenda focused on healing and child welfare, and the second day’s agenda brought the spotlight to the neurorelational framework and equity in early childhood.
CalAIMH’s purpose is to bring together organizations and individuals who promote caregiver-child relational approaches in addition to preventing and healing adversity in young children. First 5 San Bernardino was proud to sponsor this event designed to promote relationally informed practices, integrate neuro-biological science and promote endorsement in infant and early childhood mental health including reflective practice.
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First 5 San Bernardino in the Community
Community Engagement Specialist LuCretia Dowdy provided resources, including books and Kits for New Parents, to the community at the Mexican Consulate’s resource fair held in downtown San Bernardino.
On October 15, First 5 San Bernardino participated in a resource fair hosted by the Mexican Consulate held in downtown San Bernardino. Providing a variety of resources including First 5 California’s Kits For New Parents, books and trick-or-treat bags, over 200 people interfaced with Community Engagement Specialist LuCretia Dowdy throughout the event. LuCretia brought her usual fun and kid-friendly activities including face painting, which was a hit!
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Serving Children Through Fiscal Expertise
Employee Spotlight
Arminda (Hope) Loewenstein
Accountant III
While people know First 5 San Bernardino for the work we do with our partner organizations in San Bernardino County, most rarely see the robust behind-the-scenes work being done that helps us to do this important work. That’s where extraordinary employees like Arminda Loewenstein come in.
Arminda, known to all of us as Hope, has been with First 5 San Bernardino for approaching three years and brings more than 10 years of finance experience to her role as Accountant III. As part of our fiscal team, she is responsible for many aspects of the organization’s financial responsibilities. From contract accounting to audit schedules and ensuring compliance with state and county standards, Hope’s work helps ensure F5SB has the funds needed to deliver quality programs and educational content to our community.
Hope started her career with the County as an accounting technician in San Bernardino County’s Department of Preschool Services, and her interest in serving young children and families led her to First 5 San Bernardino, where she hopes she’ll be for a very long time. She believes wholeheartedly in the organization’s mission, saying, “The work First 5 San Bernardino does, especially our public outreach campaigns, is so important. I really love the Kid Safe Summer campaign! What hits home for me is the safety messages that we share with the county.”
“Hope is always excited to learn and thinks from an analytical perspective,” said her supervisor, First 5 San Bernardino Chief Financial Officer Debora Dickerson-Sims. “Having recently been promoted, she continues to shine with her hard work and reliability. We’re so happy to have Hope in the fiscal department,” Dickerson-Sims concluded.
Hope also shared that to her, it’s the staff that makes First 5 San Bernardino such a great place to work. “The experience at First 5 San Bernardino is fabulous, and I am not overstating it. Everyone is so friendly,” she said.
Thank you, Hope, for the work you do for our team. You really embody what makes First 5 San Bernardino a fabulous place to work.
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About First 5 San Bernardino
The Children and Families Commission for San Bernardino County (First 5 San Bernardino) was created in December 1998, in order to realize the benefits of Proposition 10 (California Children and Families Act) for the County's youngest residents and their families. The act created a program for the purpose of promoting, supporting and improving the early development of children from the prenatal stage to five years of age, under the guidance of the Children and Families Commission for San Bernardino, and in collaboration with the community and agencies providing services to children. Visit first5sanbernardino – First 5 San Bernardino for more information.
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