Dr. Ciara Harraher is running around her front yard on a cool Saturday afternoon in January with 20 nine-year-old boys at her son, Finn’s, birthday party. Directing a nerf war is no easy task. “Wrangling the boys was like getting an operating room in check! That was so much fun. Finn envisioned doing his nerf war, so I had to come through with it,” said Harraher. Dr. Harraher’s professional resume is remarkable. She is the Chief of Neurosurgery at Dominican Hospital and heads the Stanford Neurosurgery Outreach Clinic. She also teaches Principles of Medicine to Stanford MD students. She received her medical degree from McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, a…
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A Grandmother’s Love
My granddaughter is adorable and everything she does is adorable. I’m not just saying that because I’m her grandmother. Everyone thinks so. She is objectively adorable. Why do I feel the need to say that? Probably because I am not only an adoring grandmother, I am also an obnoxious grandmother. And I’m not just saying that. I am objectively an obnoxious grandmother. Everyone says so. I can’t get enough of that little pumpkin. I make excuses to stop by just so I can smell the top or her head (which is very big because of all the brains). I knew that I would love my grandchild even if she wasn’t…
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Managing Screen Time
Let’s face it. It’s hard to unplug from our screens. Our devices connect us to other people, as well as to fun and useful information, but they can also have a downside. In this month’s column, I’ll share some reminders for managing screen time as a family. This monthly column provides tips for anyone who is helping raise children, based on the world-renowned Triple P – Positive Parenting Program, available to families in Santa Cruz County. If you have a question or idea for a future column, email me at [email protected]. Dear Nicole,We have a toddler, a third grader, and a tween who is growing up fast. If we let…
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Caramel, Beige and Pink
Race is a mirage but one that humanity has organized itself around in very real ways. – Ibram X. Kendi My son asked me the other day about our different skin colors. He’s six, and something that might have been affecting him for several years is suddenly something he can put into words: “What color am I Mama?” “You have absolutely beautiful, caramel-colored skin,” I said. “What color are you?” he asked. I thought for a moment. “Pink and spotty,” I said. I’m an aging surfer, and this was the most accurate description I could come up with. I wondered if I had been correct in how this conversation went.…
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School Should Start Later to Give Teens More Sleep
As her teenage son groggily dragged himself out of the house and into the car at 7:10 am to make it to school on time, Lisa Lynn Lewis wondered if he was even capable of absorbing information in those first few hours of the day. “He was hardly alert, and definitely not in an optimal state to be showing up to school ready to learn. It was his first year of high school, and classes started at 7:30 am. “That was the earliest he’d ever had to go to school, and it really felt too early for all of us,” she said. She was right. Last July, state Senate Bill…
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What Is Your Favorite Thing To Do In The Summer?
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Addressing Period Poverty and Menstruation Stigma
Period poverty is defined as the struggle those who have a menstrual cycle face while trying to afford menstrual products. Despite not being able to control a menstrual cycle, those who have one are still left to purchase products that some cannot afford. I believe that menstrual products should be an approved item to purchase using government subsidies or covered through medical insurance. To help alleviate this problem for our local community, I have started a school club called “That’s on Period Project.” That’s on Period Project’s goals are to raise awareness about the stigmas surrounding menstruation, to raise money to purchase period products and to organize period product drives.…
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Coloring Contest
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Coloring Contest Winners
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Heroes of the Storm
While you and your family were sheltering from torrential rains, Manuel Rodriguez, 50, and his brother Joel, 58, were digging underground conduits to help restore power to Aptos. Not only was the work torturous in horrid conditions, but the two were far from their homes in San Luis Obispo County working six days a week, staying in a mobile home in Watsonville and driving back south for one day to see their wives and children. And, to make matters worse, the retaining wall around Joel’s house in Atascadero had collapsed and friends there were helping him out with sand bags. He figures there was at least $15,000 to $20,000 of…
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Community Comes Together
If there’s a silver lining to all the storms we’ve faced—besides fighting back on the long drought—it’s the way our community has come together. People have taken both big and small steps to help each other. Big corporations, once considered the Evil Empire around Santa Cruz, have rushed forward to help bring service to so many people stricken by the floods, often not seeking publicity for their efforts, but thanked by residents nonetheless. While everyone praises first responders from police and fire departments, we rarely see enough credit given to workers who climb poles in torrential rains to bring back electricity, cable and phone service. We’ve tried to call out…
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How You Can Help the Storm Cleanup
The Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz is organizing storm cleanup efforts in Felton Grove for the next several weeks. To sign up to be an emergency response volunteer, request flood clean-up assistance, or donate to the Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County and support its efforts, visit scvolunteercenter.org. For more information call 831.427.5070. This Google Map set up by Coastal Watershed Council leader Laurie Egan has a number of contacts for area cleanup supervisors: bit.ly/3j37NjfThe Community Foundation Santa Cruz County has launched a disaster fund to help residents and small business owners. The money will go to nonprofits serving vulnerable populations. Donations will also go to small businesses in coordination…
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Out & About
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Open Houses
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Nothing Like the First Grandchild
My first grandchild arrived seven months ago. A little girl (at least for now) called Grace. I’ve wanted to be a grandmother for a long time. I always thought I’d be a young grandmother. I had my children when I was young, and my mother was only forty-six when she became a grandmother. So, becoming a grandmother at sixty seems old to me. Still, I am surprised, or maybe just disappointed, that no one is shocked to learn that I am a grandmother. I have yet to hear the words “you look too young to be a grandmother!” On the upside, having a grandchild has taken the sting out of…
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Supporting Mental Wellness
I’m grateful for the little moments that start to feel like pre-pandemic life. Before 2020, I never thought that going to a grocery store or a friend’s house without being afraid to touch things or breathe air was cause for a celebration. But after nearly two years of the pandemic, these “small” things make a big difference. While I’m hopeful that the worst of the pandemic is over, I’m deeply concerned about the extent of the pandemic-related emotional and behavioral health challenges faced by many children, youth, and adults. The holidays can be a challenging time anyway for mental health, so it’s even more important that we care for ourselves…
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The Excavators on the Playground
I spent three years involved in writing and defending the California Preschool Foundations. State-sponsored preschool is a marvelous concept, and there were hundreds of well-intentioned people who needed to have a say in what the curriculum ought to be. The meetings required microphones and convention centers to accommodate everyone who knew about preschool. I was proud of the results, and very happy that all preschoolers in my state would have strong art, science, physical education and SEL (social-emotional learning). Years later, specialists in our county were making a learning plan for my preschool daughter with special needs. They pulled out the books I helped write to decide what her goals…
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Teen Twins Fight Water Pollution at TEDxMeritAcademy
Kids these days! We’ve left them holding the bag of unintended consequences of our own indulgences, yet our children are still vested in righting our wrongs. What solutions might they find if given the opportunity and resources?Ishan and Alisha Bhatia are twins. People ask: Do you think alike? You could say so. Both tackled the same global crisis: water pollution, each from a unique perspective. Before they were out of high school, each had discovered viable solutions and showcased them in talks at TEDxMeritAcademy. Here’s what they have to say: Ishan Imagine a contagion that popped out of nowhere, threatening 385 million lives with cancer, birth defects, and DNA degradation.…
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About the Cover
Everyone has been affected in one way or another by this winter’s devastating storms. This includes the youngest of Santa Cruz County’s community members. Our Natural Bridges Children’s Center preschoolers have been coming to school every day talking about their own family experiences and through play have been processing the beautiful ways in which they have seen community helpers, neighbors and complete strangers working together to rebuild their town. This photo captures our kind and thoughtful Lily clearing a road so that she and all of her tricycle riding friends and classmates could get home. This embodies everything that we stand for and believe in at NBCC: Inspiring Learning ~ Creating Community ~ Building Bridges About the photographer: Our…
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What Do You Do When Your Kid Knocks Out a Tooth?
Santa Cruz County is an adventurous and active place. We love to see kids outside running around, riding bikes, surfing, skating…. having fun. However, pediatric dentists don’t love the damage that sometimes happens to teeth when kids get tripped up during all that fun. We all hope it won’t happen to us, but it’s good to know what to do if it does. There are three true emergencies associated with dental trauma. These are the “you need to take action NOW” injuries; 1) head trauma 2) uncontrolled bleeding that may require stitches and 3) a knocked out permanent tooth. Often, the knocked out, displaced or broken tooth can look really…
