The Difference We Count on Women Legislators to Make

Submitted by Heidy Kellison, a former legislative staffer and current Yolo County First Five Commissioner:

Here’s the story about how domestic violence shelters were finally located in every county of the state, and what could be next:

In 1993, five women legislators (Dede Alpert, Jackie Speier, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Hilda Solis, and Martha Escutia) delayed the California budget to secure $30 million in funding for the Department of Health Services. Their goal? Locate at least one domestic violence shelter in every county of the state. They were successful. In the years that followed, action to increase California’s financial commitments to the fragile network of domestic violence centers and efforts to increase legal protections for victims became popular and necessary positions for most legislators.

Before this time, there was no sustainable funding for shelters, which meant it was not uncommon for agencies to come and go. In some parts of the state — remote areas in particular — there were simply no services available. Victims were required to travel hundreds of miles in search of safety. With no internet or widespread information system, finding reliable space was daunting and many women gave up.

Thankfully those days are past.

A foundational opportunity now exists for today’s leading women. Crisis nurseries provide safety to children when families face extreme crisis and stress — factors that contribute to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s). ACE’s are known to have long-lasting negative effects on people’s lives and are infinitely more costly to society than early, upstream investments.

Crisis nurseries support families with children ages 0–5 through emergency childcare and wraparound services. In Yolo County, 97% of families avoid involvement with Child Welfare. When asked what families would have done without the Yolo Crisis Nursery, answers include leaving children in unsafe circumstances or calling CPS.

Despite having a statute providing for crisis nursery licensing, less than a handful currently exist. This is due to no stable funding stream and an historic lack of attention to the needs of children and their families.

Today’s emerging leaders can apply the same statewide objective for crisis nurseries as the five women legislators did for domestic violence shelters nearly 30 years ago. It’s time to launch crisis nurseries in every California County.

Heidy Kellison- Commissioner, First 5 Yolo, District 4

A writer who specializes in political and non-profit communication, Heidy was the Founding President of Friends of the Yolo Crisis Nursery in 2001. She resumed that role in 2013 and led the successful effort to save the nursery from closure. It is now a thriving, independent nonprofit. As a mother, she has been active in K-12 educational policymaking including local parcel tax campaigns and policy reforms centered in equity and inclusion. A member of the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services State Advisory Committee on Sexual Assault Victim Services, former Press Secretary for the State Senate, and former board member/direct services volunteer for WEAVE (Women Escaping a Violent Environment), she has over 25 years of experience serving public policy needs to combat sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse/neglect. In her spare time, Heidy is a competitive ballroom dancer.

Close the Gap California is committed to building on progressive women’s historic momentum by recruiting them statewide and achieving equality in California by 2028. Join us!

About Close the Gap California

Close the Gap California (CTGCA) is a statewide campaign launched in 2013 to close the gender gap in the California Legislature by 2028. By recruiting accomplished, progressive women in targeted districts and preparing them to launch competitive campaigns, CTGCA is changing the face of the Legislature one cycle at a time.

One in every four women in the Legislature is a CTGCA Recruit. Our Recruits are committed to reproductive justice, quality public education, and combatting poverty, and nine of 10 serving today are women of color.