While completing a practicum in San Antonio, Texas, she discovered Healthy Families and has never wanted to do anything else. She has held positions such as a family support worker, family assessment worker, supervisor, team coordinator, program manager, and a national Healthy Families America Peer Reviewer.

She came to Florida as part of the state Healthy Families Florida Quality Assurance and Technical Assistance team in Tallahassee and traveled throughout Florida providing QA/TA to projects statewide. During her travels, she discovered Gainesville and the “Gator Nation” and accepted the University of Florida's Healthy Families Alachua Program Director’s position in 2004.

Letter of the Week: Duck, Goose, Read

Recently, I caught a news story (on television) about one of the few remaining insurance giants. The story talked about the company and the fact that it, even in this economy, is doing better than fine.

Apparently, the company suspected way back when that the housing and banking bubbles would burst, and thus it invested in only "A" grade stocks.

The CEO refused a "golden parachute" clause in his contract, and the shareholders vote on his salary. They do well, he does well.

What concepts! Invest for the future wisely and reap the rewards, or don't and go bankrupt.

Now, I'm not writing this as a commercial, because I have a bone to pick. This company has mounted one of the most successful ad campaigns in recent memory with that darned duck! He might have moved their name recognition from 10 percent to 90 percent, as the broadcast stated, but that duck is confusing the heck out of my "brand" recognition!

I'm "Mother Goose." You might have seen my goose (that the kids now think is a duck!) and I, out and about, promoting reading at events for children and families.

For a long time now, I've been seeing a troubling trend. Lots of kids (and parents) don't seem to be reading much any more. Maybe they (like me, apparently) have been watching too much television (darned duck!).

Kids don't really know me anymore (okay, to be honest that's been going on for a while). It seems the final straw was that darned duck. Am I repeating myself? Oh well, so be it.

So, my pretty red hat's off to "that company," but you know what I'm afraid of? Maybe Mother Goose's bubble has now burst. Are we going to have to ask for a literacy bailout? Or can we do better as a community in investing in our real "A" grade stocks: our children?

It's up to us to make sure that only our children have "golden parachutes" that open with good health, nurturing and stable environments and always, a solid, quality education that begins even before birth.

Let me think about it. I think I'll ask my goose, but only because I know he can't say a word. Especially, that word!

Joyce LeBlanc (Mother Goose)[For now!]
Program Director
Healthy Families
Alachua, Columbia, Union and Bradford Counties