By Danielle Wermund, Communications Specialist, CSDA

We all have been concerned with the number of disasters from hurricanes in the southeastern United States and nearby islands, as well as other tragic events in the news worldwide. We started hearing about the sudden outbreak of wildfires overnight on October 9 in Northern California, and our hearts went out to everyone impacted. We recognize the fires may have affected you personally, someone you love, or others with whom you are acquainted.

Several of the fires are still in the process of being contained, and a little over 15,000 are still evacuated as of October 20. We want to recognize the challenges that have been experienced and will continue to be experienced while lives are restored to a new normal, although they will never quite be the same. Our condolences and sympathies to all who experienced any amount of loss.

We would like to take a moment to allow those impacted to share what was experienced in their areas and see what insights we can gain from their experiences.

You can help. Invite them over for a meal or spend time listening to those affected. Roll up your sleeves and donate your time by volunteering. Donate money to organizations that are caring for those in need. Contact locations housing evacuees before donating physical supplies, food, or other practical items. These locations may have a list of items that they need or let you know if it is better to supply funds.

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Summary of the statistics of some of these fires

Mendocino-Lake Complex Fires Mendocino and Lake County 38,007 Acres 545 Structures Destroyed 43 Structures Damaged 8 Fatalities 1 injured	Wind Complex Fires Nevada County 17,037 Acres 398 Structures Destroyed 16 Structures Damaged 4 Fatalities 1 injured
Southern LNU Fire Impacted Napa and Solano Counties 51,624 Acres 785 Structures Destroyed 90 Structures Damaged 6 Fatalities	Central LNU Complex Fires Impacted Sonoma and Napa Counties 110,720 Acres, 173 Square Miles 6,957 Structures Destroyed 486 Structures Damaged $3 Billion Loss Estimated Over 100,000 Displaced 23 Fatalities

Experiences in their own words

Mendocino County DCSS – Bruce Mordhorst, Director Though Mendocino County lost over 425 homes in the recent fires, none of our 27 employees lost their homes.  We had one employee without electricity for 3 days.  Since we are a small county, several of our employees have family and friends who lost their homes.  I personally know a local doctor who found out he lost his home while working the Emergency Room at the Ukiah Hospital.  County employees are considered Disaster Assistant Workers and all of our staff were requested to work the Emergency Operations Center; none refused the request and were eager to help.  Child Support has given well over 150 hours of our employees’ time to the effort. In fact, yesterday we were still manning the emergency phones and will do so again tomorrow.  We also have an employee who helped coordinate the large animal shelter over in Boonville.   Recovery is in process now.  I took a drive in the fire zone Sunday and saw the destruction and the random way a fire storm reacts—several houses gone and one standing.  Stories of neighbors helping each other during and after the storm are countless.    Such a sad loss of life and property. All I can say is MENDOCINO STRONG!!!

Nevada County DCSS – Tex Ritter, Director Recently Nevada County experienced 3 devastating fires burning almost 1,000 acres—the Lobo, McCourtney, and Garden fires (now referred to as the Wind Complex Fires) forced the evacuations of thousands of rural residents in Nevada County.  All fires are now 100% contained. There were 4 fatalities, one injury, and 398 structures destroyed.  One of the smaller fires among a particularly dangerous late-summer fire season, the cause is still unknown.   All Nevada County personnel had to be ready to assist evacuees and provide support if necessary. What happened, what did we learn, and what do you need to know? Best thing is to visit www.ready.gov for information about how to prepare for a disaster.  Have a disaster bag ready with flashlight, batteries, clothing, cash, water, some snacks, medicine, photocopies of ID and credit cards, phone charger, pet supplies, and other important small items that you will need.  You may not have time to go looking for things. Cell phones may not work in the event of a fire as the towers burn.  Know alternate routes.  Roads may not be passable due to fire or other disaster.  Have a plan and make sure all family members know the plan and have rehearsed it.  Know your contact points, where to check-in and where you will meet. In our fires, roads were closed, evacuations ordered, and some county infrastructure was threatened including our Waste Transfer Station and Animal Shelter.  No animals were injured in our fires, but the shelter was threatened.  That meant during the evacuations, pets could not be taken to the animal shelter, and the evacuation shelters generally do not accept pets, so many evacuees stayed in the parking lots with their pets. With the road to the waste management facility closed, there was no trash service.  This is a bigger risk for fire and health than you would automatically think.  Many complaints involved trash piling up and the risk for increased fires due to the shifting winds were received by all county personnel. Our disaster was not as widespread as the fires in Sonoma and Napa, but we have a lot of forest and brush, so we had to prepare for a large blaze.  That meant exempt staff being called in to work evacuation centers, give out food and clothing, and be ready to give advice to residents about where to get assistance.  Our Office of Emergency Services opened the disaster center and called staff to help with logistics, supplies, and caring for evacuees and possible injuries. After the evacuations were lifted, the clean-up commenced, again having an impact on county resources.  More people visited the County Administration Center in the days after the fire than they did the entire summer.  The parking lots were over full and parking for staff was limited.  FEMA set up disaster relief centers at our County Administration Center to assist individuals with fire and disaster related losses.  Child support personnel had to be aware of where FEMA was, what they do, and who they could assist because we would get calls from individuals wanting to know where to go. All in all, we were very fortunate in Nevada County, but preparation is key.

Napa County DCSS – Janet Nottley, Director Lessons from the Fire Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, Napa has had three opportunities in the last three years to test our Business Continuity Plan. Lessons that Napa learned… Communications— Employees, LCSAs, DCSS, and CSDA Having a clear communication plan for employees is critical. It must include personal phone numbers and personal e-mails. Plan for no cell service for both the area the agency is in and where employees live. Have supervisory staff keep text and e-mail groups to communicate with as staff may not be at work and cannot get to work. Ensure they are updated as new members are added or removed from the team. Have a plan that includes an agreed upon time and number for conference calls to communicate with employees, or set up daily conference calls to have employees check in and get information regarding work. Have a list of critical tasks to assign to another county in case your employees cannot work for a period of time Staff Have a plan with your sister county where staff will report to work if your building is in danger or CSE is down in your building. Have a back-up plan (in our case Solano County went down at the same time and they are our sister county). Make sure staff are aware of the plan. If you can, predetermine which counties will have room and which counties are closest for which employees as you may have to send employees to multiple counties. Include a plan for some staff to work in the county if possible as some work cannot be done from another county due to technology constraints. Have communication regarding status of your department go through DCSS. Have phone numbers of DCSS staff as part of your plan. Make sure your staff understands what the county pays for in case your department is uninhabitable or not accessible due to damage or natural disasters. Deal with staff union issues in part of your planning. CSDA For counties with no conference lines or if your conference line goes down, the CSDA will allow you access to their line. Keep the cell phone numbers of CSDA staff as part of your communication plan. Send communication of additional information (how people are doing, if you need help, etc) through the CSDA as people want to reach out and offer help but responding to e-mails, calls, etc. while you are dealing with a department disaster and personal disaster at the same time can be overwhelming. Customers Include a drop-in center for customers; it may need to be at the Local Assistance Center. Most importantly, we are very fortunate to be part of the CSS community both professionally and personally. The outpouring of support for Napa through the earthquake, the Lake/Napa County fires, and the recent fires was overwhelming. Our customers were well taken care of, and my employees were able to concentrate on the emergency needs for their families and the community.

Solano County DCSS – Pam Posehn, Director I was visiting friends in Washington for the holiday weekend when I learned about the fires in Sonoma and Napa counties.  I received an email informing me the county internet was down with no estimated time for the repair. I called our assistant director on my drive home from the airport and asked her to call the supervisors scheduled to open the next day to let them know about the internet situation and that I would be in early. Although the fires were miles away, the HVAC system was drawing outside air in, and the building was super smoky. The AT&T line that provides internet service to the county runs through Napa and Sonoma. The fire was still raging, so AT&T couldn’t access the lines to assess the damage, let alone repair it. No CSE…smoky building….no point. I got permission from the CAO to close the office.  We had compiled a list of personal contact information, so staff who reported to work early pitched in to call the others, and the office was closed within an hour. Thanks to the support of the child support community, we secured workspaces in neighboring child support agencies, so staff could return to work the following day. Toward the end of day one, the county had patched together an internet solution with limited bandwidth. The decision was made to deploy staff to Yolo and Contra Costa the following day with limited staff in Solano. Day 2—Yolo and Contra Costa moved quickly to accommodate staff and made them feel welcome. Limited staff reported to Solano where we found the air quality in the building acceptable. The fire was still burning out of control and moving toward Solano County. HVAC was contacted to close the flow of outside air into the building. Day 3—Staff continued working in Yolo and Contra Costa. The fire crossed into Solano County and residents about 2 miles up the road from the office were asked to evacuate. Sacramento graciously agreed to house the remainder of our staff if either the patched internet was not sufficient for operations or we were forced to evacuate the office. Day 4—The winds remained calm and firefighters began to get a handle on the fire. The weekend produced good results and we were able to bring all staff back to the office by noon the following Monday, one week after the fires started. Lessons Learned Although we found some areas we can strengthen, our Business Continuity Plan was solid. We found our initial actions were more instinctive, but having that plan and especially all the important contact information was invaluable. All supervisors and managers have a copy at home and a copy at the office. Communication with staff was a bit challenging. Although we had the contact information, playing the phone tree game that first evening to tell people where to report the following day was challenging.  An email/text distribution list with personal contact information would have made the flow of communication office-wide much smoother. Using the CSDA conference line allowed supervisors and managers to figure out a game plan for staff deployment at the conclusion of the weekend. We have Single Sign On so staff either had to work without their full array of systems or come in to the office and memorize all their passwords J . Staff were not able to access the on-line timekeeping system remotely, so it was a bit of a scramble to complete all timesheets by the payroll deadline. By the end of the week, staff working remotely began to have some discomfort. If staff had been deployed any longer, we would have needed to bring in some ergonomic equipment. Solano survived the Atlas Fire and are stronger as a result! I greatly appreciate the assistance of Yolo, Contra Costa, and Sacramento for their willingness to step in and help out. I also have a greater appreciation for the dedication and hard work of my staff, and they in turn have a new appreciation for the comforts of home. Solano County fared better than our neighbors. As of today (10/26/17), the Atlas Fire is 97% contained and has burned 51,624 acres in Sonoma, Napa, and Solano Counties and destroyed 481 structures. SONOMA/NAPA/SOLANO STRONG!

Sonoma County DCSS – Brett Williams, Assistant Director Action Plan—Know your local emergency operations plan.  Use your employees’ contact information and communicate via email, phone, and text.  In an emergency, you will be responding to life and death circumstances that will require you to bend the plans to fit the need.  Be nimble and take the necessary action. At 6:02 a.m. on Monday, October 9, Sonoma County sent an email to all county employees stating that the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated just after midnight.  The county began calling employees into service as emergency workers.  In rough numbers, about a third of our Sonoma DCSS colleagues had been evacuated, a third reported to DCSS for work, and the remaining colleagues reported for duty in their capacity as emergency workers. Emergency workers were assigned to the EOC, the Local Assistance Center (LAC), the FEMA Disaster Recovery Center (DRC), or to various other sites related to the emergency.  The LAC was an assembly of over 50 agencies and departments from city, county, state, or federal organizations as well as a variety of for-profit and nonprofit organizations to support the victims of the wildfires.  The LAC has served over 8,000 households!  Visitors to the LAC could find replacements for vital records from the county or from the state.  They could speak with experts from FEMA, DMV, local planning and building departments, insurance companies, and even child support all located in one building and supported by 200 employees and volunteers.  Many who worked at the LAC say that this is one of the most important and meaningful experiences of their working lives.   Child support was well represented as emergency workers throughout the first three weeks since the fires ripped through our communities; those colleagues not assigned to emergency worker duties covered their colleagues’ tasks with heroic effort. Continuity of Operations (CoOP)—Know your “CoOP” and be ready to adjust it to meet the needs of your county and your participants.  We have worked shoulder to shoulder with workers from other cities, other counties, other states, and from federal agencies.  In this moment, despite whatever political rhetoric rains from above, the “on the ground” reality is that every worker who puts his or her shoulder to the plough is on mission for saving lives and protecting property. In the first days of the wildfires, Sonoma County had that sole mission at the forefront of every action. It was in those first days after the wildfires first filled the air with smoke, our child support participants were supported by our sister Local Child Support Agencies (LCSA) from Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Riverside, and Ventura as well as guidance from the state.  All critical tasks were moved forward thanks to our sister agencies stepping into the breach on our behalf.  There was an outpouring of support from the state, sister LCSAs, and a dedicated team of child support colleagues here in Sonoma County to ensure our participants were not left in the lurch. Some of our local communities were consumed by flames, and neighboring communities within hundreds of miles were choked by thick smoke.  Despite the displacement of thousands of residents… despite the loss of lives and the trauma that landed on every member of our community… despite the tragedy… there is a feeling that we who have survived this moment have come together to support our neighbors, our colleagues, and our shared recovery.  It is true that we are Sonoma Strong and that there is more love in the air than smoke.  It is only true because we have locked arms with our colleagues and friends from local, state, and federal agencies. From the Ashes… Hope An unanswered knock grows into a pounding on the front door… 6 minutes later, the apartment has been burned down.  The ashes are all that remain of her physical possessions with one exception: an armful of her china pattern known as “Inspiration” with the word “Dream” written on each coffee cup.  This is the foundation for building her life back after the wildfires claimed the rest.  Toni chooses to use this inspiration and dream of rebuilding. Toni is one of thousands living in Sonoma County facing the overwhelming challenge of rebuilding a life in the face of this catastrophic complex of fires.

Toni’s Inspiration Series Dishes	Julie Calzontzi and Dora Navarro at LAC

Opening morning at the LAC

Additional preparation information for disasters.

Are you ready to go in the event of emergency day or night? When you get these items ready, review with your family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors.

Sign up for local emergency alerts, check local county website for emergency alert information.

• For Sacramento, & Placer – http://www.sacramento-alert.org

EMERGENCY SUPPLIES CHECKLIST

Don’t let them worry— Contact lists of those who want to know you are all right.

At times texting may be a better means of communication than calling. Many have utilized social media accounts to communicate quickly to the masses as well. Keep all phone calls brief. Let them know you are ok or need help, and give your address and any other information if you need help.

Immediate family Extended family

Close friends near or far Supervisor or manager for work.

AT NIGHT

Always keep a sturdy pair of shoes and a flashlight near your bed and handy in case of a sudden evacuation at night.

ANYTIME – What’s in your Emergency Go Bag?

Evacuate to where? Map marked with at least two evacuation routes (cell service may not be available)	First aid emergency gear First aid kit Flashlight Battery-powered or solar powered radio and extra batteries
Clothing & Food & Medication Three-day supply of non-perishable food Three gallons of water per person Sanitation supplies Prescriptions or special medications Change of clothing (undergarments, shirts, pants, socks, good sturdy shoes) Extra eyeglasses or contact lenses	Financial or other physical items to have on hand An extra set of car keys Credit cards, cash or traveler’s checks Copies of important documents (birth certificates, passports, etc.)
Pet care Pet evacuation plan Pet food and water! Pet carrier
Items to take if time allows: Easily carried valuables Family photos and other irreplaceable items (Think about scanning or digitizing them) Personal computer information on hard drives and disks Chargers for cell phones, laptops, etc.	Who needs help nearby? Be ready to assist, don’t let them be forgotten. Family members in the house or nearby Injured, ill or infirmed neighbors

Resource Websites

Cal OES	http://www.caloes.ca.gov For individuals and families For businesses and organizations
Cal Fire	http://calfire.ca.gov Returning home after a wildfire! How you can help Insurance Preparedness Animal Evacuation Be ready to evacuate and go – Ready, set go (video) iPhone or Google – CAL FIRE – Ready for wildfire APP
FCC	https://www.fcc.gov/general/tips-communicating-emergency
FEMA	https://www.fema.gov/
American Red Cross	http://www.redcross.org/
Ready.gov	https://www.ready.gov Be ready for a wildfire Be ready for an earthquake Be ready for flooding What to do when there is an active shooter For children Build a kit Know the facts Make a plan

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By Tara Turrentine, Homeless Youth Coordinator

El Dorado County Office of Education

El Dorado County Child Support Services has selected Homeless Children Matter as the beneficiary of fundraising efforts for the next annual CSDA training conference in May 2018.

You were briefly introduced to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act in the September One Voice Newsletter. Celebrating its 30^th anniversary, the McKinney-Vento Act’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth program provides children experiencing homelessness with protections and services to ensure they can enroll in and attend school, complete their high school education, and continue on to higher education—their best hope of avoiding poverty and homelessness as adults. The “Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015,” (ESSA), strengthens and improves these programs and the education of over 1.3 million children and youth experiencing homelessness, from early childhood through high school graduation. Mandated by the McKinney-Vento Act, every school district nationwide is required to have a liaison to identify and serve children experiencing homelessness.

Given the number of children and families displaced by recent fires in California, many children will enroll under McKinney-Vento allowing a shorter interruption to their school attendance. As the Homeless Youth Coordinator at the El Dorado County Office of Education, my first call this morning asked me to clarify the law with a local school enrolling a child displaced by the recent hurricane in Texas.

In addition to times of natural disaster, the McKinney-Vento Act supports children who have unstable housing to stay connected to school, and statistics on the national, state, and local levels continue to show the need for these services and how that need continues to grow:

The number of children identified as homeless in the United States has increased over 100% since 2006, going from approximately 600,000 to 1.3 million by 2016.

California identified 275,000 children as McKinney-Vento in 2015–2016. Just over 21% of the Nation’s children identified as McKinney-Vento were enrolled in California schools. To understand this impact in California, according to the California Association of Realtors, there are 40 million residents in California and currently enough housing for 25 million.

As an example from my community, El Dorado County identified 959 children experiencing homelessness during the 2017–2018 school year. This number represents about 3.5% of our county’s enrolled children. We have seen a 26% increase in children experiencing homelessness in the last 4 years. According to a San Francisco article, since January 2015 median housing prices in El Dorado County have shot up 37% and median rental rates have increased 88%.

Homelessness is a growing complex issue nationwide, and as high as the statistics are regarding homeless children, these numbers under-count the actual number of homeless youth, considering that this count only scans public schools. Not reported in these statistics: children or youth not enrolled in school, school-aged children and youth who experience homelessness during the summer only, those who drop out of school, or young children not enrolled in preschool or kindergarten programs.

I am grateful for the partnership with the El Dorado Community Foundation and El Dorado County Child Support Services for the creation of the Homeless Children Matter Fund to be selected as the CSDA charity. Special thank you to Don Semon, Director of El Dorado County Child Support Services, for his vision and this opportunity to provide awareness and support for children experiencing homelessness.

For more information or to arrange a donation, please contact Ginger Harms at 530-642-7238 or ginger.harms@edcgov.us

Watch for future articles on the Homeless Children Matter Charity

January 2018—Case study/complexities of the issue

March 2018—How LCSAs can help

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Reporter COLIN ANDERSON, Lead Attorney, Yolo County DCSS

Something to think about: SHOULD OUR COURTS BE SANCTUARIES FOR LITIGANTS?

The CSDA Legal Practices Committee (LPC) meeting was held telephonically on September 15, 2015. A “walk-on” topic that engendered a lot of discussion was the issue of the special challenges for undocumented individuals in appearing in California courtrooms.

            The question posed was whether our courtrooms are sanctuaries for undocumented individuals—where they can/should be free from arrest? The backdrop of this discussion is the increase of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents making arrests of illegal aliens either in the courtroom or just outside it.  NOTE: I have purposely interchanged illegal alien and undocumented individuals to extenuate the divide this issue is in this country.

            The argument against such arrests is that they deter undocumented individuals from seeking justice as a witness or litigant, or as a victim of crime, for fear of being deported.  In a child support context this is seen often.  Litigants are afraid to admit in open court that they are working.  Further, because of their undocumented status they may not show up to contest a child support order or respond to a Summons and Complaint for fear of ICE/government reprisals.  This can lead to defaults on cases that really need more input from the litigant.  An LA Times article from March of 2017 reported on a couple who went to get married at the Kern County Superior Court and were subsequently arrested by ICE agents.  Such incidents led California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye to write to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to request them to cease such arrests. “Enforcement policies that include stalking courthouses and arresting undocumented immigrants, the vast majority of whom pose no risk to public safety, are neither safe nor fair,” she wrote. “Courthouses should not be used as bait in the necessary enforcement of our country’s immigration laws.” And “They not only compromise our core value of fairness, but they undermine the judiciary’s ability to provide equal access to justice. I respectfully request that you refrain from this sort of enforcement in California’s courthouses.” http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article168714487.html#storylink=cpy

            On the other hand, from a law enforcement perspective, as expressed by Sessions in his response to the Chief Justice’s letter, an appearance in court is a perfect opportunity to apprehend a person who is breaking the law.  The individual has passed through security, so they have no weapons and an arrest can be made safely.  In addition, with the advent of sanctuary cities in California many jurisdictions do not honor ICE detainer holds.  In the past these individuals would have been turned over to ICE by local law enforcement once their case was finished.  However, this no longer happens.  This can lead to illegal aliens with significant criminal histories being released back into the community, constituting a potential public safety threat.  A chilling example is the killing of Kathryn Steinle who was killed by an illegal alien after being released by the local authorities who did not honor an ICE detainer hold.

At beginning of this article, I purposely began talking about courtrooms being sanctuaries for all litigants. It has been my experience that courts in general are in fact not sanctuaries for litigants. Individuals are not protected from arrest or other government action based solely on their presence in a courtroom or in the courtroom hallways.   I have seen witnesses and visitors arrested on warrants by law enforcement in the hallways of a Superior Court.  In addition, law enforcement—and LCSAs themselves—use court attendance as an opportunity to serve an individual with a summons or a subpoena, especially for individuals who are otherwise hard to find.  I have also observed judges being upset when a witness in an action was arrested prior to the commencement of a trial or hearing.

 

The reality is that courts are a public place and laws are enforced there as they are in other public spaces.  So the question that comes to my mind is:  Given that citizens are not granted sanctuary from law enforcement in the courtroom, should we advocate that non-citizens be granted sanctuary?  If not, should or can we develop processes to assist an undocumented litigant in obtaining access to court proceedings in a way which does not expose them to “discovery”?  Or should courts be a true sanctuary from law enforcement for all and no one can be arrested inside the walls of a Superior Court?

Something to think about.

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Steven J. Golightly, Ph.D., Director, Los Angeles County CSSD

Family History

On May 9, 1952, I was born in Jersey City, NJ, to Joe and Delores Golightly. Two years before that, my mother and father were on a vacation in NC (where my dad was from) and my mom went into labor early with my sister. The hospital was not very advanced and my sister Patricia Ann died 24 hours after birth. Every April 3, my mother would remind us about Patricia Ann’s death and how the nurse simply told her, “Your baby expired a few hours ago.” I was born two years after that, four years later Judi came along, then eight years later Kathy, and then lastly in 1965 Nancy was born. Yes—the only boy and the oldest.

We lived in Black Mountain (NC) until I was in the third grade, then moved to New Jersey where my mother’s family was. We lived in Kearny (Soprano TV show city) and eventually migrated to the Jersey Shore, living in Long Branch. Did you know that there’s a Long Branch branch of the Red Bank bank? I went to grade school in Long Branch (Our Lady Star of the Sea), and high school in Red Bank (Red Bank Catholic).

My father left us when I was 14, and our mother managed to raise the four of us on a secretary’s salary with some help with Food Stamps. No child support for us!

Mom passed away in 1998 from emphysema, having smoked her entire life. Dad passed away in 1975 from a whole host of issues. My three sisters are all happily married. Kathy and her husband Joe live in Black Mountain, NC, and have five grown children and one grandchild between them. Judi and her husband Peter live on Long Island and have two grown children and two grandchildren. Judi is also a breast cancer survivor (we are all happy to say)! Finally, Nancy lives in Brigantine, NJ, with her husband Tony. They have twin boys in college, age 20.

As many of you know, I have three children—Ben, 41; Lindsay, 37; and Elizabeth, 28. Ben is a Commander in the U.S. Coast Guard, currently stationed in Washington, D.C. He and his wife Lisa have two girls— Shannon, 14 and Meghan, 12. Lindsay is a teacher’s assistant in Ithaca, NY. She and her husband Derek have three children— Everett, 11; Charlotte, 9; and Andy, 6. Elizabeth is a high school teacher and lives in Baltimore.

Ben and Lindsay were with my first wife, Fairlee. Elizabeth is from my second marriage with Alesia. Again, as many of you know, I have been with Douglas for 21 years and married to him for almost four.

Professional Career

So, now moving on to my career path. After my second year of college, I was asked not to return—my GPA was 1.4. I took that as a sign to marry my college sweetheart, Fairlee—and we did so in September 1972. We moved to Syracuse, NY, where I took a job as a bookkeeper for a temporary employment (day laborers) agency working in the office. During the summer of 73, we both worked as camp counselors at Camp Hi-Rock in the Berkshires. I was Chair of the Archery Department, and she was the Camp Nurse. Fairlee was accepted into Med Tech school and we then moved to Jamestown, NY. I found a job as the bookkeeper and office manager for a wholesale bakery. We bought our first home in 1975 (she still lives there), and Ben was born in March 1976.

I soon grew tired of working in the private sector and secured a position as the program manager for the Manpower Programs Office in Chautauqua County (NY) government. We lived in the tiny county seat of Mayville, population 1,500. County government had a total of about 1,500 employees, and the County’s entire population was about 100,000. It used to be called the Grape Juice Capital of the World because Welch’s was headquartered there. I often tell folks that my first job in county government was in one of the smallest counties in the country, and my current county job is in the nation’s largest county.

After a few years, and for reasons still unknown to me, I was appointed Director of the Manpower Programs Department, and Executive Director of the Private Industry Council.   I was 24 years old. My boss—the County Executive—started sending me to Albany and to Washington representing him on various committees and commissions. One thing led to another, and in 1984 I was offered a position in Washington, D.C. with the National Alliance of Business. I was there 12 years and rose to the position of Vice President for Human Services, with responsibility for all our work in welfare reform and job training nationwide.

In 1996, I applied for a Senior Executive Services (SES) position with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and was eventually appointed as the Regional Administrator based in Atlanta for the HHS, Administration for Children and Families (ACF) in Federal Region IV—the eight southeastern states. This was an incredible career growth opportunity for me, as I was the senior federal representative in the poorest part of the country during implementation of the 1996 welfare reform legislation. Among the programs I was responsible for were welfare, child care, child welfare, Head Start, and child support. I loved living in Atlanta and met so many great people, including the brain trust in Washington that I reported to, and worked with.

Three years later, I was approached about a position in Los Angeles County as the Chief Deputy Director of the Department of Public Social Services (DPSS). I took that job, and we moved to Los Angeles in October 1999. After one year, my boss quit and the Board of Supervisors appointed me as the Interim Director. In 2002, shortly after Philip Browning came to Los Angeles to run the newly created Child Support Services Department (CSSD), I moved over as his Chief Deputy Director. In 2007, the board asked Philip to move to DPSS and they appointed me unanimously as the CSSD Director, without a recruitment. I’ve been in this position for 10 years now and my seniority rank with the 36 department heads is 5. Lots of turnover here.

Along the way, starting in 2002, I decided to go back to school and work on finishing my BS degree. I did that in 2004, finished an MPA degree in 2007, and a PhD in 2010—proving you’re never too old to go back to school.

And Now…

Douglas and I live on the west side of Los Angeles with our two dogs—Sterling and Poppy IV, and their boss, our cat, whose name is Mavro (Greek for black). I love living and working in Los Angeles, where I truly feel I have an opportunity to impact the quality of life for so many people every day. The weather’s not so bad either!

I have met so many incredible people in my career—but specifically those in the child support community. I cherish my California child support family, and those in my nationwide child support family. So many lifelong friendships have been developed.

As I begin to contemplate retirement, I know I’ll miss the collegiality, the camaraderie, the laughter, and of course, the great gastronomic experiences.

For now, though, I am living a charmed life, and have so much to be grateful for.

PS – Did I mention that Douglas and I are HUGE Dodger fans?

 

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Kelley Cote, Director, Lassen County Department of Child Support Services

Growing Up

I am the firstborn of 5 (yes 5 girls). They are Stacy, Jennifer, Dena and Kristin. I was born in Chester, CA, where my dad was a Deputy Sheriff and my mom stayed home. When I was 5 we moved to Susanville because my dad could make more money working at California Correction Center (CCC).

It’s funny when I think back about my childhood—my sisters and I had a great childhood. My dad was an amazing dad. My sisters and I wouldn’t be the strong-willed, successful women that we are today without him. He taught us that all we have is each other; no one in the world will make your life the way you want it, but you must work hard no matter what you do. He’s been gone now for ten years and it feels like it was just yesterday.  My mom is great—I can hear her now—you must love people…all of them.

I come from a huge Mexican family and some of my best memories are when we all would get together. One of the best memories that I have is during one of these get-togethers. I remember my grandpa sitting in a chair in a circle with my great uncles, and each of them had their guitars. They would be playing and singing, and each of them would have one of those huge gallon wine jugs by their feet (Ernest and Julio Gallo) … I know!  My mom and aunts would be singing with them.  To this day, the song Cielito Lindo makes me laugh and cry at the same time.

Adult Life

I am married to a wonderful man named Jim. He owns a local business in Susanville.  We have been together for almost twenty years. I have one son—my baby, his name is Scott (I call him Scotty) and he is 27 years old.  He works in construction and drives me crazy.  Being a mom to an adult child is so weird sometimes.  Sometimes I think, how did I get here?    Anyway, I have two fur babies.  Jebbie, our dog and Gus, the cat. They are spoiled rotten. How rotten you might ask? I crockpot their dinners.

If I could do any profession in the world, I would be a chef. Part of that memory that I shared was missing a part—the food. My grandma was the one who cooked at these functions.  Since I was the oldest, I got to stand on a stool and help make tortillas.  As I started cooking, the feelings from that memory have been what I always try to recreate for my guests.  A little family secret—I am the only one out of my aunts, sisters, and cousins who learned our family recipes and still cook them. My dream is to have my own restaurant on the beach in the Baja. You never know… it could happen.

How I got into Child Support

I started in 1998 as a Legal Secretary for the District Attorney. I worked four hours a day for the D.A. and the other four hours for child support. I only took the job because it made more money than the last job that I had.  I had a new baby and needed health insurance.  So, I said why not.  Well… I have been with the county for almost twenty years now and I have only worked for child support.  I have worked through the ranks of every position and I have been the Director for a little over two years.  I love this program.  There is so much to do and my focus is, how do I leave this wonderful program better than when I first began.  That’s the journey, right…

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By Ross Hutchings, Executive Director , CSDA 

This past couple of months have been marked with many tragic events. First were the devastating hurricanes and the destruction they brought. Then I attended a Celebration of Life for one of my dear friends who died from Alzheimer’s after a diagnosis at the age of only 58. Also, I attended the memorial service for a co-worker who became my boss early in my career—again, way too young. Finally, my heart has been broken like many of yours at the death, destruction, and damage from the recent wildfires.

When incidents like this occur, it tends to make one think about their life—what is most important. We saw whole neighborhoods leveled and families devastated by the loss of their homes and personal possessions. We also saw many who left their homes to burn while they helped their neighbors or protect their animals. And still many were just grateful to be alive for themselves, their spouse/significant other, family, and friends.

What is important varies according to each person. However, we all tend to get busy with our lives, in our day-to-day work, working on our careers, improving our financial situation, providing for our families, acquiring comforts of life, increasing travel, and other daily activities. Sometimes we fail to “stop and smell the roses,” to appreciate the little things and remember what is most important to us. These tragic incidents tend to jolt us into thinking about these basic realities.

This got me thinking about life’s priorities. Many of us have most likely attended courses where they talk about having balance in our life—you know the ones that draw a wheel and list important aspects of life in the spokes—material, social, physical, professional, pleasurable, mental, spiritual, emotional. The conventional wisdom is that if we allow any one of these to be greater than another, the wheel (life) gets out of balance. However, we all know that balance is not very realistic; it is almost impossible to keep all these areas equal. And these imbalances depend on where we are in our lives and what our focus is. Yet, we also have all experienced times in our lives where we have had a few areas that are so far out of whack, it has been a detriment, negatively affecting other parts of our life.

So how can we keep things in balance and focused on the most important elements in our life? If you Google “balanced life” you’ll see articles on: “5 Ways to Balance your Life; 10 Simple Ways…; 6 Tips…; 5 Easy Steps…;” and on and on. They do contain some excellent tips and suggestions on how we can try to do this. However, with all self-help information, it is difficult to incorporate or put these into practice unless we are conscientious about this all the time. That is what tragedies do—they bring into focus what is important in our lives.

Through all the devastation that has occurred recently in the U.S. with hurricanes and wildfires, it was heartening to see all the help and assistance given to those who lost much. People set aside their differences, their political views, prejudices, and personal discomfort to reach out and physically and/or financially help those in need. Incidents like these bring out the compassion in us. Compassion causes us to put ourselves in their position, which involves an examination of those things that are important in life. The same holds true when we lose someone close to us or they are taken away at a young age. It brings into focus what individuals and things are the most valuable to us.

The key is to keep our lives balanced enough so that core items remain constant in our minds. That way we will continue to be focused on what is most important, which will bring meaning and satisfaction to all that we do.

Again, thank you to all who reached out and helped others during their time of need.

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By Natalie Dillon, Director, Yolo County DCSS

I had the privilege of attending the 2017 WICSEC (Western Interstate Child Support Enforcement Council) conference in September in Anchorage, Alaska. It was a particular privilege as California’s own Tamara Thomas, Director of Human Resources, Stanislaus County was the presiding President. As an Honorary Lifetime WICSEC Board Member, I am a member of the conference planning committee. I coordinated, moderated, participated and spoke during various sessions throughout the conference.

One of the big highlights of the conference was seeing two of our own receive recognition from WICSEC. Specifically, San Bernardino DCSS won the Program Awareness Award and Stanislaus County DCSS won the Outstanding Program Award.

Program Awareness Award – San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County’s program awareness program began with a change in philosophy, as they moved toward a family focused process with a view toward removing barriers to support. They have successfully transmitted this message into the community through a variety of innovations to compliment more traditional methods such as radio interviews and educating local partners. Their facebook page has over 6,000 likes, and is used to advertise outreach events. They use email blasts with positive messaging, based on behavioral economics principles, to communicate with targeted audiences about various topics. They even have advertised on an electronic billboard on the very busy I-10 freeway.

Outstanding Program Award – Stanislaus County, California

In federal fiscal year 2016, Stanislaus County broke the $50 million mark in distributed collections, bringing in over 51 and a half million dollars, an increase of $2.1 million from the previous year. They were able to achieve this milestone through a variety of methods, from cross-training staff to increase comprehensive knowledge of program operations to focusing on cases paying less than 100 percent of the full obligated amount to “just asking” for an additional payment on arrears at every opportunity. They also improved the quality of services through focusing on customer service, more effective communication, and thanking parents with excellent payment histories. Outreach to high schools, Veterans, employers, and others rounded out their recent efforts to improve their program.

My favorite presentation was the plenary session Breaking the Ice and Melting Differences taught by Father Michael Oleksa on Cross Cultural Communication. This plenary was less a formal presentation but a series of stories connected together to broaden our world view. He points out that everyone has a culture and says the best definition of culture is “the way you see the world”. He had us each close our eyes and envision standing in an old barn looking up at the old rickety roof seeing the sunlight peek through the holes. He observed that when we step into the beam of light and look through to the outside, we see the world outside of the barn – blue sky and clouds, but no longer the beam of light. But when we step out of the light, yet still in the old barn, we can see the beam of light for what it is and all of the dust particles floating through it. He draws this parallel with culture – as our own culture is invisible to us. We can look at other people’s culture and see how they differ from our own, but we can’t articulate ours very well. From here, he gave numerous examples that magnified how our lack of understanding others culture often creates miss-communication. This presentation certainly changed my perspective and I would encourage you if you have an opportunity to listen to him speak.

One of the California presentations I particularly enjoyed was Everybody Needs a Little “Nudge”: How to Use Behavioral Science Concepts in the Child Support Program taught by Dr. Steven Golightly from the Los Angeles County Child Support Services Department and Cassandra Holzhauer from the Ventura County Department of Child Support Services. The workshop was highlighted effective strategies used in these California counties. For example, every letter from Los Angeles that is not generated at Central Print has a wet signature – no signature stamps, digital signatures, or blank signature blocks. Case managers are encouraged to personalize their letters with hand written notes, hand addressed envelopes, customized post it notes, etc. Furthermore, in letters and in conversations, staffs at both LCSAs use the customers and most importantly the children’s first names. This technique personalizes the conversation, nudging customers to “do the right thing”. Los Angeles has also used color research that speaks to what colors generate the best response. They have found we have been conditioned that green, means go, it means take an action – move forward. Whereas red and various shades of pink are viewed as negative and generally don’t get positive responses from readers. Cassandra Holzauer from Ventura pointed out that goldfish have a longer attention span of 8 seconds than current day humans at only 7 seconds. So if we are going to catch someone’s attention, we need to do it quickly! Ventura is very intentional about giving customers choice – multiple ways to make a payment, email, mail or drop off forms to the office, electronic signature with DocuSign or a wet signature, etc. They also found that by changing the order of the forms in the packet and moving the Answer Form up in the packet, more NCPs completed the form and engaged in the process – lowering their default rate. If you are interested in reading more about Behavioral Nudge Theory, I would recommend Malcolm Gladwell’s books Tipping Point as well as Blink.

The closing plenary was entitled Salmon Swimming Upstream, playing on the conference location in Alaska. Many local and state jurisdictions from around the nation are watching their caseloads shrink feeling like there is nothing they can do about. I was there to share some of the work Yolo County Department of Child Support Services has done develop our brand and change our community’s perception of the Child Support Program. I was able to highlight the new and improved website, our progress on social media, the Jack and Jill video’s, and the innovative marketing using cross platform advertising at the movie theaters. I was also able to show the tremendous success we have found using the Quick App in five short months since starting the new application; in just a few months the Quick App represents 17% of new-never assisted cases opened in Yolo!

The WICSEC conference is a great opportunity to learn about some of the innovative child support practices occurring throughout the western region – which is everything west of the Mississippi. The conference also has a strong focus on Interstate and tribal issues. If you haven’t attended before, I would encourage you to explore next year’s opportunity to attend which will be in Omaha, Nebraska October 14-18, 2018.

More information on WICSEC visit: http://www.wicsec.org/

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By Maureen Leif, J.D., President and Founder of Grays Peak Strategies

The idea of agile strategic planning came from the most unexpected place, as most great ideas do, in a conference session with child support directors from all across the nation talking about strategic planning. One of the participants, who was being brave and honest, said, “Why do we even do a strategic plan?” Suddenly there was a chorus of voices saying, “yes…why do we?” The general consensus was that these traditional plans, while well intentioned, tend to be built at the executive level and rolled down to the front-line workers to implement. Almost as soon as the plan is agreed upon and published, something changes, and the reality of what you are doing starts to depart from the plan and moves further from the consciousness of your organization. The plan winds up on a shelf, or on many shelves, until it’s time to write a new one and hasn’t offered anything in terms of guidance; there has been no interaction with the plan, and an opportunity has been missed.

Strategic planning dates back to ancient Greek civilization. The term “strategy” is derived from the Greek word “strategos” which means “General” or army leader. Strategic plans were a matter of life and death; they were a way to have a plan when no information could be communicated on the battlefield. Today, however, we are inundated with real-time data on performance and goals. It does not make sense that we should decide today where we should be in 5 years when the data will be updated tomorrow. This is where Agile comes in.

The concept of Agile has taken a strong hold in the world of system implementation projects. Agile has been a successful concept for system implementation because components are rolled out as they are developed and the project is adaptable to a changing business environment. In the field of human services and child support services delivery, we are faced with a constant changing environment. It is therefore impossible to lay out a plan for the next 5 years when the real-time data that is available to us makes our goals a moving target. Agile allows an organization to review, analyze, react, and change to help move the mission of the agency forward.

One of the premises of Agile is gathering feedback and buy-in from all levels of the organization. Three questions that have been effective in gathering feedback across the organization are: “Does this goal excite and inspire you? Why do you do what you do?  What do you believe should be the priority for the organization?” These interviews and surveys have yielded results that have inspired the executive teams charged with writing these plans. Maybe the executive teams’ job these days is less about managing the work and more about managing the passion and inspiration.

One of the cornerstones of this approach is to include regular scheduled Plan Updates, Plan Feedback, and Report on Status. This can be accomplished by developing a report card that lists all of the stated objectives and allows some easy description of the status of each. For each objective, a simple report that would provide the plan objective, the goal date, the current status, and the next milestone date. This report card should be updated at least monthly so that the organization can track progress on each goal.

In order for this approach to work, there also has to be a method to allow for interactive feedback on the plan. One approach is to create a Strategic Planning Website. The main purpose is to allow quick access to the status of objectives, and to provide a means for feedback that is private and easy to access. Alternatively, interactive feedback may be facilitated by including updates on regular staff meeting agendas, or providing written updates to everyone. Whatever the method, it’s critical to establish not only a mechanism, but also a culture that encourages participation and values feedback and suggestions to improve the plan.

Using a combination of the Agile approach and interactive feedback, the leaders of an organization can create strategic plans that are meaningful and provide guidance to meet the agency’s goals and objectives. The plans can adjust with the changing environment while keeping the focus on the longer-term goals in place. This approach to strategic planning has been applied in Michigan and in Los Angeles County. While in both cases, the plans are at the very early stages of roll out, leadership is already seeing a higher level of interaction and buy-in from the participants than these organizations experienced in the past. Over the next couple of years as this approach to strategic planning is tested further, our process will also mature and improve —making the Agile approach “agile” itself. We have been back to that conference, and sat in the same room with the child support directors from across the nation, just hoping that question would be asked again because we think we have a better answer this time.

Maureen Leif, J.D., President and Founder of Grays Peak Strategies. Maureen has worked within the human services and court arenas on strategic planning, policy development, and training for over 18 years.

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