Sesame Street Helping in Tough Times

Nevada Public Radio recently hosted a Spanish screening of Sesame Workshop's Families Stand Together; Feeling Secure in Tough Times, a bilingual (English and Spanish) multiple media initiative designed to help families with young children experiencing difficult economic circumstances. Through simple strategies and tips that can be incorporated into everyday routines, Families Stand Together provides families with materials that can lead to positive outcomes for their children's physical and emotional well-being.

       In today's economic climate, approximately two out of three middle-class families are at high risk of losing or not sustaining their economic security. Increases in job loss and income cuts have made families struggle with basic costs like housing, medical care, transportation, food, clothing, and child care. Often, parents are forced to make difficult decisions that affect their children. In this environment, even basic family activities like talking, playing, and spending time together can easily be overlooked.

       There are many tools and resources available to help families through these difficult financial challenges, but some families, especially in lower income brackets, don't know how to access the resources or find the information. In addition, there are tools available to help parents and caregivers navigate their children's anxiety. There is no better time to provide U.S. families with resources that address the consequences of their economic insecurity.

       The screening was shown in Spanish after a chance meeting with members of El Tiempo who shared the stories of the Hispanic community being taken advantage of by fellow countrymen who misrepresented themselves as someone who could "save their homes" often for a fee (paid up front). It was at this time that Nevada Public Radio also realized our efforts with the Hope@Home project were entirely in English. The Spanish screening event was an opportunity to reach out to our Hispanic community, who could also benefit from the trusted resources, news and information on our Hope@Home website, www.nvhopeathome.org.

Prior to the screenings on Saturday, November 7 and Sunday, November 8, the attendees were welcomed by Nelson Araujo from United States Senator Harry Reid's office. Saturday's event was hosted by Assemblyman Ruben Kihuen and Sunday's was hosted by Univision reporter/ producer Annette Raveneau.

       The hour-long HD special, hosted by Al Roker, Deborah Roberts, and Elmo, aimed to help families with children ages two to eight who are experiencing difficult economic circumstances by offering strategies and tips that can lead to positive outcomes for their children's physical and emotional well-being during this tough economic climate.

       Featuring Sesame Street's Grover, Chris, Elmo's family, financial expert Jean Chatzky, and parenting and relationship expert Dr. Joshua Coleman, Families Stand Together provides simple strategies and helpful tips that can easily be integrated into families' everyday routines. The special includes documentary footage of real American families who are living through difficult economic conditions, encouraging positive strategies and modeling behavior for parents and care providers to support the entire family during insecure times.

       "The Sesame Street Event was a fresh and innovative way to educate people about the effects of foreclosure," says Teresa Torres, a housing counselor with the Women's Development Center of Las Vegas. "It was amazing to watch the Sesame Street characters share their message about what families go through when dealing with foreclosure. I believe this presentation will help children better understand the circumstances they face."

       The screenings were held at the James Boys & Girls Club in North Las Vegas and at the West Charleston Library. Sesame Workshop in partnership with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting generously provided free outreach kits for all attendees. The kits contained a condensed bilingual DVD version of the screening special, a children's storybook about a new Sesame Street character that moves into the neighborhood, and a parent/ caregiver guide. Nevada Public Radio also helped Sesame Workshop distribute over 14,000 outreach kits to nonprofit organizations in our community.

       Following the screening events, local nonprofit organizations spoke about their Spanish language services. The organizations in attendance for the two day event were: HUD, Olive Crest, Catholic Charities, Women's Development Center, Legal Aid of Southern Nevada, City of North Las Vegas, Community Services of Nevada, and Family to Family.