Young children in Graham and Greenlee counties will continue to get the tools they need to have a fair start in life, thanks to more than $600,000 in contracts recommended earlier this month by the First Things First Graham/Greenlee Regional Partnership Council for fiscal year 2011.

The contracts were approved by the statewide First Things First Board on June 15 and are effective as of July 1.

“If children birth to age 5 have a productive, safe and healthy start in life, then their chance of future success is greatly improved," said Laurie Smith, chair, Graham/Greenlee Regional Partnership Council. “First Things First is able to fill in the gaps and provide services that may be offered in metropolitan areas but do not filter down to the rural areas.”

First Things First was created in 2006, when Arizona voters — through the Proposi-tion 203 ballot initiative — decided to set aside 80 cents from each pack of cigarettes sold in order to fund the expansion of education and health programs for children from birth through age 5. Under the terms of the proposition, decisions about how to best use the funds are made on a per-region basis by 31 councils made up of local leaders. The statewide board — which has final approval of the council's recommendations — is responsible for ensuring that the funds are used on programs proved to work at improving outcomes for children.

The strategies recommended by the Graham/Greenlee Regional Partnership Council will support community-based strategies that will:

• Improve the quality of and access to child care;

• Aid in the prevention of child abuse through a home visitation program;

• Provide access to nutritious food to families in crisis;

• Deliver age-appropriate books monthly to young children through a book club;

• Provide training and information about early literacy and brain development to parents and caregivers;

• Increase the number of therapists living and working with young children in the area by offering financial incentives; and

• Distribute Arizona Parent Kits to parents who give birth in the Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center.

The specific contracts approved June 15 for the Graham/Greenlee Region include:

• Safford City-Graham County Library for the Early Childhood Literacy Project

• Graham County Interfaith Alliance for Food Assistance

• Child & Family Resources Inc. for Home Visitation

All of these services are in jeopardy.

“The attempt to eliminate First Things First goes directly against the original intent of the voters of Arizona,” Smith said after the Regional Council’s June 28 meeting. “While we understand the state’s budget situation, eliminating children’s services would be counterproductive and would be especially detrimental to children in rural areas.”

Smith was referring to a November ballot measure approved by state lawmakers earlier this year. If approved by voters, the measure would eliminate First Things First, sweep all the funds set aside for early childhood education and health, and let the Legislature decide what to do with that money.

The Graham/Greenlee Regional Partnership Council took action to oppose the measure at its June 28 meeting and issued an official resolution opposing HCR 2001.

The resolution urges Arizona citizens to do their utmost to preserve early childhood services in Arizona, including:

• Informing and educating voters on the devastating effects of the HCR 2001 ballot measure to the education and health of Arizona’s youngest children;

• Becoming involved in formal efforts to defeat the HCR 2001 ballot measure; and

• Voting NO on the HCR 2001 ballot measure in November.

“The services funded by First Things First are really making an impact in our community,” Regional Council Vice Chair Cindi Alva said after the meeting. “So much has already been taken from families in our area because of the economic downturn of our state; it really scares me to think about what will happen if the existing services are taken away in November as well.

“Our children deserve better than this,” Alva said. “Our community needs to do whatever they can to protect what we have so that our children will have the best opportunities to grow up safe, healthy and ready for school and life.”

First Things First, approved by Arizona voters, works to ensure that our youngest children have access to quality early childhood experiences so they will start school healthy and ready to succeed. Across the state, FTF regional partnership councils, in collaboration with local leaders, identify the educational and health needs of children from birth through age 5 in their communities and fund strategies to address those needs.