West Virginia Kids Count
Champions of Children
CATHY BONNSTETTER JOHN SIBOLD
Tricia Kingery , executive director of West Virginia Kids Count .
Jennifer Garner , award-winning actress , child advocate and Charleston native , has been named the 2021 West Virginia Kids Count Champion of Children . Garner clings to her West Virginia roots although she now lives with her family in Los Angeles , CA . She began her work with Save the Children , an organization that has worked with the country ’ s poorest communities since 1932 , with a heartfelt plan to impact West Virginia ’ s children .
From her home in Los Angeles where she virtually accepted her Kids Count award , Garner credits her Mountain State upbringing for her success as an adult . She says the West Virginia lifestyle gives a child room to grow and blossom .
“ There is so much about West Virginia that makes it a great place to be a kid ,” Garner says . “ One of them is opportunity . In West Virginia you can explore and become yourself in whatever time it takes to become yourself .”
Garner says the sense of community found in the Mountain State encourages children to grow with confidence , whether that community is a neighborhood , church or school . She recalls with fondness her mentors , such as Nina Denton Pasinetti , the artistic director of the Charleston Light Opera Guild , and her elementary school librarian , Annyce McCann .
“ You can ’ t say enough about a community that loves you and lifts you up ,” Garner says . “ Mentors can help you see sides of yourself that you never would have seen . They can push you to be a version of yourself that you might not have imagined you could be . That is something that is hard to recreate in a big city .”
For many children , West Virginia is a great place to grow up . However , 70,000 children in West Virginia are living in poverty , according to the 2021 Kids Count Data Book . In
her travels with Save the Children , Garner has seen families struggling firsthand .
“ Kids need help . Moms need help . It doesn ’ t take much to get underwater and be weighed down by the trauma of poverty ,” Garner says . “ I have visited young mothers all over the state , and I have seen how few resources there are for moms in all of rural America . These young moms didn ’ t have mothers like mine who read to me every day all the way through middle school . If you are having to choose between diapers and meals , you aren ’ t going to be thinking about reading to your child at night .”
West Virginia Kids Count , founded by former West Virginia Governor Gaston Caperton in 1989 , provides information for strong policies and effective actions needed to change lives . The Kids Count Data Book ’ s numbers shine a light on all the state ’ s children .
“ You can ’ t say enough about a community that loves you and lifts you up . Mentors can help you see sides of yourself that you never would have seen . They can push you to be a version of yourself that you might not have imagined you could be . That is something that is hard to recreate in a big city .”
WWW . WVEXECUTIVE . COM FALL 2021 85