I need to tell you something that keeps me up at night.
In 2022, 91 families in Cuyahoga County lost a baby before that baby turned one. In 2023, that number climbed to 112. That is not a statistic moving in the right direction. That is 112 families who planned a nursery and ended up planning a funeral. (Source: PBS / City Club Forum, Dec 30, 2024)
And if you are a Black family in this county, your baby is nearly three times more likely to die before their first birthday than a white baby. Three times. In 2026. In the city I work in, live near, and love.
I am a nurse. I have been a Licensed Practical Nurse for over 12 years. I have held babies who were too small. I have sat with mothers who were too tired, too scared, too unsupported to know where to turn. I have watched families fall through cracks that are wide enough to drive a truck through. This is not abstract to me. This is Tuesday.
The County Is Trying. It Is Not Enough.
I want to be fair here. Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne launched a child wellness center that is now housing kids dealing with mental health challenges, substance abuse, homelessness, and trauma. His words: "We needed to do better by our kids." He is right. And I respect that he acted. (Source: Cleveland 19, Feb 3, 2026)
The state is stepping up too. Governor DeWine and the Ohio Department of Children and Youth are funding the H.O.P.E. Campus right here in Cuyahoga County — a 24/7 Child Wellness Welcome Center for kids referred through child services, hospitals, and law enforcement. It is a collaboration between the county, juvenile court, the Board of Developmental Disabilities, and the ADAMHS Board. It is expected to open by the end of November 2026. (Source: Spectrum News 1, Feb 19, 2026)
These are good things. I am not here to tear them down.
But I am here to say: county programs and state grants cannot fix a crisis that was created by decades of federal neglect. A child wellness center is not a childcare system. A welcome center is not universal pre-K. Crisis response is not prevention.
We are putting bandages on wounds that need surgery.
What Federal Investment Actually Looks Like
Cleveland needs a representative who understands what happens when the federal government walks away from children and families. I have seen it from the exam room. And I have seen it from my own kitchen table.
I am a mom of two. My youngest son has autism and receives therapies — speech, occupational, behavioral. I have navigated every waiting list, every insurance fight, every moment of wondering if the services will still be there next month. I know what it feels like to sit on hold for 45 minutes while your kid needs help right now. I know what it costs — not just in dollars, but in sleep, in worry, in the constant low hum of wondering if you are doing enough.
So when I talk about federal investment in children, I am not reading from a policy paper. I am talking about what I need. What my neighbors need. What the families I have cared for need.
Here is where Congress could actually make a difference:
- Fund universal childcare so parents do not have to choose between working and raising their kids
- Expand Medicaid coverage for maternal care — prenatal, postpartum, and mental health — to address infant mortality at the root
- Increase federal funding for community-based programs like First Year Cleveland that are already doing the work with shoestring budgets
- Support research institutions like the Schubert Center for Child Studies at Case Western Reserve, which has spent over 25 years bridging research, policy, and practice for children in this region
- Make developmental therapies — speech, OT, behavioral — accessible without a six-month waitlist and a billing nightmare
None of this is radical. It is what every other wealthy country already does for its kids.
This Is Why I Am Running
One hundred and twelve babies. That number should make every person running for Congress in this district lose sleep. If it does not bother them, they should not have the job.
It bothers me. It has bothered me for years. That is why I stopped waiting for someone else to fix it.
I am not running with PAC money or party backing. I am running with you — with the nurses, the parents, the neighbors who know this crisis is real because they are living it. If that is you, I need your help.
We need 2,200 signatures to get on the ballot by May 4th. If Cleveland's kids matter to you, sign your name to this campaign. Volunteer. Tell your people. We do not have corporate money, but we have something they cannot buy: we actually give a damn.