 Good morning. I'm Kathy Fletcher, CEO of Voices for Children of San Antonio. Welcome to our third live-streamed event. We're thrilled to have over 1,100 participants from all over the state of Texas, 10 different states, and four foreign countries. Voices for Children is a child advocacy organization focused on working with many community partners and stakeholders to improve programs and policies that affect the most vulnerable children. As several hundred of you from our area know, Voices with many partner organizations and local and state lawmakers has been hosting free all-day professional development events for several years. We can't hold large in-person events right now, and this is a very new way of doing things for us, but we're really sold on it and plan to continue. We're planning these events to focus on issues that are relevant in the current public health crisis. We know that the children you serve and that we all care about have lost ground socially and in their learning. Many have had traumatic and scary experiences. We know that you're here because you want to support them when they come back to you. Voices is so proud to partner on this event with child care group headquartered in Dallas, one of our state's oldest and largest providers of early childhood education. Their CEO, Tori Manas, will join us in just a few minutes. Before we begin, we want to thank our generous sponsors. HEB, our wonderful San Antonio-based grocery chain and always committed to the community, and PNC Bank, a strong supporter of child care group and early childhood education. Also in San Antonio, the Judge Andy Medellis Charitable Foundation. We are so grateful for their support. They make this possible. We'd like to thank Nowcast and thank them a lot. Nowcast SA and Charlotte Ann Lucas, the producers of this event. They're behind the scenes and they know more about this technology than the rest of us could ever hope to. Also in the background are Miranda Cushman and Eli Escamilla, Voices staff. They will be monitoring the chat room and can answer some questions or concerns or minor tech problems that come up. So thanks, guys. A little housekeeping. There will be a break and an interactive portion of the event. So please have some art supplies handy. We'd love for participants to share their artwork on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Be sure to tag Voices for Children and Child Care Group. The photos with the most likes for each organization will be sent a copy of the Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm and a copy of Sun Kisses, Moon Hugs. About your certificates, make sure you stick around for the link to the required post event survey in order to receive your certificate. The certificates documented your hours are not automatic. They will be sent by email to you within three business days. Now I have the honor of introducing two of our very dedicated state legislators. They're here because they understand the importance of the work you do and of the first several years of a child's life. Okay, it is my true pleasure to introduce Representative Rafael Anciya, a Texas champion for children and families. Representative Anciya brings his school board experience, education, intelligence, commitment, and a big heart to the Capitol. He's currently serving his eighth term in the Texas legislature and represents the western corridor of Dallas County, including the cities of Dallas, Farmer's Branch and Irving. Representative Anciya currently chairs the House Committee on International Relations and Economic Development and is a member of several other House committees. He graduated cum laude from SMU and received his law degree from Tulane University Law School. As the devoted father of two daughters, Representative Anciya understands the importance of promoting the social emotional health of young children. He has devoted his public service life to fighting for civil rights, public education, protecting the environment and improving access to health care for women and children. Welcome, Representative Anciya. We're so glad you're here. Thank you for that kind introduction. It's so good to be with everyone this morning. When my friends at the child care group asked me to provide some welcome remarks, I was really honored to participate. I know there are over 1,100 people out there, and not only from the United States, but from our friends internationally, and I want to welcome you to this gathering. And I was trying to think a little bit about early childhood and how I've come to this issue. And I was thinking back to two very important seminal experiences that I had. And I'll start with the most contemporary first. And that is as a baby lawyer back in 1994, I went to what is called the get on board fair that the Center for Nonprofit Management puts on in Dallas County. And I was looking to get involved in some sort of public service. I wanted to participate as a board member in an NGO. I just didn't know when it were to start. And I was walking around this this fair, the get on board fair. And I came across a little table that was staffed by a spectacular woman named Alice Escobar. And I hope she's on today. But Alice was looking to start a child development services facility in in really what was a child care desert in the Love Field area that I'm honored to represent now. And she was looking for board members and I didn't think I had very much to offer. But I walked on over and talked to her a little bit. And she said, Well, why don't you consider joining our board? And I said, you know, I'm just a baby lawyer. I don't I don't even know how to turn the printer on at the law firm. So but but if I can offer some of my skills and some of the things I benefited from in my life to this service, that would be great. So we we had a really successful run where we were serving about 150 students in the Love Field area, young, young, everything from infants to four year olds at the time. And I know it made an impact on not only those young people's lives, but their parents lives as well. And then the other experience I'd just like to share with you to let you know why I care about this issue is one of the things that's not included in my bio, but is is important in the in the way I see the world is that I'm the son of immigrants to this country and my mother's from Mexico, my father's from Spain. And I remember when I was a little boy, my father lost his job and he was unemployed for for a long while. And we we had to move in with relatives. I remember this for two reasons. One is that it was a very tough time in our family's life because my dad was out looking for a job. My mother was working very, very hard. And I needed people to help me through that period. And in this little two bedroom house, we had three seniors, my mother and my father, no, which is my godmother and godfather, and my parents and then me. So you can understand that between Doña Esperanza, which lived in the house, that means hope. Doña salvation, we used to call her Salva. That means salvation. These seniors took care of me and gave me all the love and attention probably more than I even deserved or needed at the time. But it allowed my parents to get back on their feet because we had people who would speak to me in Spanish and English, who gave me a lot of love who fed me who took care of me. And I reflect on that experience because there are a lot of families who don't have that. And that's what that's the important role that our child care facilities fill today. And I know this is a very delicate time and I've been on a lot of calls with either HHSC, the Texas Workforce Commission and the committee that I chair has oversight over the Texas Workforce Commission and their child care program. And then as small business owners, as child care providers, as parents, you all are doing your best during this very difficult time. You're thinking about your employees, you're thinking about those families you serve, and you're worried about the coronavirus. So I really want to empathize with you because you're filling such an important gap for essential workers throughout our economy. And you at the same time are trying to keep your business as a float during what is a recession and hopefully not going into a depression. There are a couple of bright notes and I know that you come to this conference trying to understand if there's hope here at the end of the process. And there are two things I want to signal. And that is a growing, the first thing is a growing bipartisan effort. And I was on a call earlier this week, again, with the governor's office, TWC, HHSC and others, because we still have about $171 million of CARES Act money that is yet to be deployed in this state. And the question came up during that meeting about, hey, is there a deadline for us to put that money out? And both Republicans and Democrats were of the mind that we needed to get that money out to our child care providers throughout the system, because at this point, this is a very delicate tipping point for many of you, it may be existential. So we are growing a bipartisan movement in the state to try to get you some help. And the second thing I want to point out is that there is going to be a important focus on child care during the next session. In the committee that I chair, we are going to be kicking off a, I won't call it a hearing, but a town hall meeting on the importance of child care for the recovery of the economy of our state. And that's going to be right out of the gate, our first interim work. And so we're going to be inviting a lot of the people from around the state, the subject matter experts like Tori Manis from the area that I represent, who's a dear friend, a longtime friend, to give us ideas and experiences about how we can best deploy that money and make sure that your businesses can be stay intact, can essentially be backstopped financially by the state and at the same time play an important role in people's lives for recovery. With that, I don't want to speak any longer because you're going to be hearing from some very important people today, not the least of which is someone whom I have the extreme good fortune of serving with in the Texas legislature. And that's Inamin Harris. Now, if you don't know Ina, she is a force of nature. She is not only someone who I really enjoy locking arms with in the Texas legislature to fight the good fight on issues like child care, but also someone who represents Bear County well in just a very short period of time. She's become a leader in that delegation. And I'm so very proud to share this opening, these opening remarks with her. So with that, I want to yield it back to our organizers. Thank you so much for allowing me to be part of this. And to my really close friend, Ina, I send you regards from North Texas. And I hope I can see you in person soon. Thank you. Thank you so much, Representative. We are just so honored. And if there's any, and I don't want to say good, it's a shame that it has taken so many tragedies to show how absolutely critical the child care industry is to children, to families, to the economy. The economy cannot reopen if there's no one to take care of the children. I'd also like to say that I'm also the child of immigrants. And on our voices website, one of the things you will see is a picture of the Statue of Liberty, which is has been very important to my family and continues to be. So now it's my honor to introduce Representative Ina Minhatas, born and raised in El Paso, Representative Minhatas graduated from Notre Dame and from St. Mary's School of Law in San Antonio. As a young attorney, she represented children who were victims of abuse and neglect in the child welfare system, and later served as Assistant Criminal District Attorney in Bear County, prosecuting perpetrators of crimes against children. Representative Minhatas was elected in a special election in April 2015 and has served constituents of District 124 in Bear County since that time. She was named Rookie of the Year during the 85th legislative session, received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Department of Defense for her support of military service members and received the Women's Advocacy Award from the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Representative Minhatas has actively proposed and helped pass legislation to support vulnerable children and foster care and to effect needed improvements in the child welfare system to improve access to substance abuse treatment, therapy services to address cyberbullying and to expand public school pre-k. She's been a strong and consistent advocate for the most vulnerable children and is committed to working to resolve social inequities. She's also been a good friend to voices and a supporter of our city's collaborative efforts in trauma-informed care. I'm so proud to welcome Representative Ina Minhatas of San Antonio. Good morning, everyone. Thank you, Kathy, for having me here this morning. And I want to give a warm welcome to my dear friend and chairman, Rafael Lancia. It's because I have watched him on the house floor and some of the biggest fights that I have really learned from him. And I appreciate his support for all of the sessions that I have served. What I want to say this morning, everybody, is we are in such a critical time. I want to take the opportunity to thank each and every one of you. Your service to children is not unnoticed. This morning, I was watching the news as I normally do at five in the morning when I wake up. And there was a story of a four-year-old little girl named Blake MacLennan. You may have seen her on social media. There were shared postings of her having a meltdown because of the pandemic. And that really struck me because I don't think there really has been truly an emphasis on what are our young children growing through. You know, she was having this meltdown and it really touched my heart and can only imagine how do you bring comfort to that child? And how can you explain what's going on so that they understand and what coping mechanisms do we give them? And so it is so critical, the role that you all play in that. Families are going through a lot of stress. Economically, many have lost jobs. Many have lost loved ones. Some are getting sick. Some don't know how they're going to pay for their health care. And this all affects the family unit. And I know many of you are at the front line. Many of you may have been exposed to COVID. Many of you may have lost loved ones. Many of you may have employees that have been exposed as well. And I want to take this opportunity to know that we will continue being your voices at the Capitol. I hope that leadership finally understands the critical role that you all play, the need that funding, proper funding, be put towards childcare and early intervention for children. This is this this pandemic has really highlighted the gaps that needed to be addressed. So I want to thank you for being here this morning. I'm so looking forward to our presenters and seeing how we all can be that village of support for you all and for our children of the state of Texas. Many of you come from throughout the United States. We have folks from not only Texas but California, Connecticut, Los Angeles, and internationally all the way from India, from Germany, from England. So you know what, we all really truly are a team coming together on behalf of our children. So again, thank you for taking this beautiful Sunday, I mean Saturday this weekend so that we can all come together and figure out how we can provide the necessary support for our children and for our childcare providers. Thank you all so much. Honored to have you fighting for children in our state Capitol. Now it's time for the program. So enjoy the rest of the day. Thank you.