Ideas for Social Distancing - Rep. Katie Porter's Whiteboard

[lpetrich]

Katie Porter on Twitter: "I have loved seeing your creative suggestions of ways to stay connected, keep kids occupied and on task, and support our communities while social distancing. ... https://t.co/lNjVs1SR7x" / Twitter

I have loved seeing your creative suggestions of ways to stay connected, keep kids occupied and on task, and support our communities while social distancing. Here are some of my favorite ideas that I will be adding to #KatiePortersWhiteboard today

Supporting local businesses by virtually purchasing gift cards to use once the threat has passed.

Creating daily schedules with your kids to designate work time, creative time, and play time.

Family cooking competitions (I make a pretty great hamburger so I think I would win this one in my house).

Taking breaks from work and schooling to spend time outdoors riding bikes, scooters, and more. Above is my daughter Betsy and I doing some outdoor yoga today!

It is on all of us to follow public health guidance and protect our communities, but we are in this together, so keep sharing your ideas, and I will keep highlighting them on #KatiePortersWhiteboard!

 

[lpetrich]

Katie Porter on Twitter: "As a single mom of 3 kids serving in Congress, I have some experience with being distant--and needing creative ways to stay connected and have community support. My kids do too! See what’s on #KatiePortersWhiteboard today. https://t.co/AQFWRBQwDg" / Twitter

1. Created a grocery group. One shopper for 5 families per day.
2. Setting up FaceTime / Skype playdates for kids.
3. Using the E-book service at our public library to get books.
4. Designating one kid helper each meal so cooking at home is shared work -- and an opportunity to each and enforce hand hygiene.
5. Having family contests - jumping rope and shopping hoops in our driveway to get exercise and fresh air.

As a single mom of 3 kids serving in Congress, I have some experience with being distant--and needing creative ways to stay connected and have community support. My kids do too! See what’s on #KatiePortersWhiteboard today.

Current CDC guidance recommends staying 6 to 10 feet away from each other. This social distancing can dramatically reduce and slow the transmission of COVID-19. How you social distance will depend on your circumstances.

I live in a suburban area in California and am a single mom of three kids. Our public school is closed and @GavinNewsom has restricted group events. We brainstormed ideas as a family on #KatiePortersWhiteboard.

Created an informal grocery group. Each day one person goes and shops for what everyone needs. This reduces crowding in stores and panic buying. Groceries are left on the porch and we use electronic pay to reimburse that day’s shopper.

Setting up FaceTime play dates for my kids, rather than in-person. Schedule these in advance so your child has something to look forward to.

Using the ebook feature at our local public library rather than going to the physical library.

Designating one kid each with helping with breakfast, lunch, or dinner so cooking at home is both shared work and an opportunity to teach and enforce good hygiene.

Having family contests jumping rope and shooting hoops in our driveway to get fresh air and exercise.

Battling COVID-19 requires us to be creative AND consistent with public health guidance. What other ideas for social distancing should we add to #KatiePortersWhiteboard to help protect our community?

She noted the Governor of California:
Gavin Newsom on Twitter: "Changing our actions now will save lives in the days and weeks to come.
To protect the public health, CA has issued an updated policy --
Gatherings with 250+ people should be rescheduled or canceled at least through the end of March. MORE: https://t.co/u5A2WbHBO3" / Twitter
noting
To protect public health and slow the rate of transmission of COVID-19, gatherings as described below should be postponed or canceled across the state of California for at least the remainder of the month of March.

• Large gatherings that include 250 people or more should be postponed or canceled.
• Smaller gatherings held in venues that do not allow social distancing of six feet per person should be postponed or canceled.
• Gatherings of individuals who are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should be limited to no more than 10 people.

Social distancing is a practice recommended by public health officials to stop or slow down the spread of contagious diseases. It requires the creation of physical space between individuals who may spread certain infectious diseases. The key is to minimize the number of gatherings as much as possible and to achieve space between individuals when events or activities cannot be modified, postponed, or canceled.

 

[lpetrich]

Katie Porter Talks COVID-19, Pelosi, and Congress's Role - The Atlantic

In Congressional hearings, she's done a lot of nice questioning of business leaders and gov't officials, like Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

When I called Katie Porter on Tuesday afternoon, she was fixing lunch.

“Apologies if you hear banging in the background,” the 46-year-old congresswoman told me when she answered the phone. She chuckled as she began to chop something—zucchini, I would later learn. “Three meals a day here! We’re gettin’ three squares.”

...
Elaine Godfrey: I watched your questioning of Robert Redfield, as did many Americans. Describe that moment.

Representative Katie Porter: As much as I care about banking regulation and the problems that it causes, this is life or death. He came with the kind of answers as if I’d asked him about interest rates at the Federal Reserve or capital holding requirements. But I was literally asking him, Are you willing to save lives? And so I think I kind of pushed in a more forceful way. Because life is potentially at stake.

...
We’ve asked businesses to allow telework. We’ve asked schools to implement remote learning. Yet Congress is not itself doing those things. If we all gather together on the House floor in a group of 430-plus people, we are creating a public-health risk, and so I’ve been pushing hard since last week for remote voting procedures. Potentially, I think we’re going to need to hold remote hearings as well.

Hang on one second, please. [To her kids:] I’m making lunch. We’re having zucchini, fries … You can have a piece of broccoli. Put that back. There’s chicken in the oven.

...
Godfrey: So you’re back home in California?

Porter: Even though I’m doing things by telephone, even though we’re not doing in-person town halls, I’m here. My constituents know I’m here; they know I’m seeing what’s happening in our community. And my kids go to public school, so I’m getting messages from the school about how school lunches are gonna work for kids who need it, about what to do if you don’t have internet, and how the school district can help you.

...
Godfrey: What did you make?

Porter: We’re having grilled chicken, warmed up. Baked beans. I found some leftover steak fries that I put in the oven to make crispy again. Then I cut some zucchini and grilled those. It’s actually like a real meal!