#69 It Takes a Village: Building Stronger Families Through Community Collaboration, with Melanie Piazza and Marinela Maneiro-Goodwin

*“There is a big gap between being welcome and being wanted. It's not just translating something into Spanish so that you feel welcome. It's asking what kind of programs people actually want, because we have things to learn too.” — Melanie Piazza* I’m Dr. Shelly Mahon, your host, and today I bring you Melanie Piazza of the Parent Engagement Network and Marinela Maneiro-Goodwin of Boulder County's Institute for Strengthening Families.  Episode Description In this episode, incoming Executive Director Melanie Piazza and mental health consultant Marinela Maneiro-Goodwin talk about what PEN has learned over those 25 years, and about the collaboration between PEN, Boulder County's Institute for Strengthening Families, and the Early Childhood Council of Boulder County that is trying to answer an old question in a new way. It takes a village to raise a child, but what does that village actually look like for families today, and why has it been so hard to build one that includes everyone? Marinela brings a candid perspective on the gap between organizations that want to serve Latino families and organizations that Latino families actually trust. She and Melanie talk through what cultural responsiveness looks like beyond translating a flyer into Spanish, the barriers that keep parents from showing up even when help is available, and why being wanted is a different thing than being welcomed. Melanie reflects on 25 years of PEN's work and what she is carrying forward as she steps into leadership, including the belief that connection, not resilience alone, is what actually helps parents feel supported. Together, they make the case that no single organization can be the whole village. Real support for families comes from organizations that are willing to sit down as equals, learn from each other, and build something that could not exist if any one of them tried to do it alone. About Our Guests Melanie Piazza is the Executive Director of the Parent Engagement Network, or PEN, a Boulder County organization that helps parents and caregivers find practical tools, resources, and community support. Melanie previously served on PEN's board and brings a unique perspective to the organization through her experience as an entrepreneur and founder of Family Village, a community center created to support families. She is passionate about building the connections and community that help parents feel less alone. Marinela Maneiro-Goodwin is a mental health consultant, educator, and facilitator who has spent much of her career working with Latino families and communities. With a background in clinical psychology and organizational development, Marinela focuses on strengthening families through culturally responsive education, communication, stress management, and substance-use prevention. She brings an important perspective to the collaboration between PEN and Boulder County's Institute for Strengthening Families. In This Episode, We Cover - What Melanie is seeing as the biggest challenges facing parents today, what parents tell her they need most as she steps into leadership at PEN, and what 25 years of PEN's work has taught us about what actually helps parents feel supported, connected, and confident - What a village looks like for families today, and why collaboration between organizations with different areas of expertise means coming to the table *“as equals”* - The work of the Institute for Strengthening Families, and the honest history behind this collaboration, including Marinela's reflection that PEN has worked hard to bring the community together but hasn't always succeeded in reaching the Latino community, and that *“it is nobody's fault”* - What meaningful cultural responsiveness looks like beyond simply translating information into Spanish, the difference between being welcomed and being wanted, and the barriers that keep parents away even when resources exist because they don't feel they belong in certain spaces - Building real trust with families, including Marinela's point that Latino families *“contribute a lot to the community in general”* rather than only showing up for childcare, food, or a prize, and her reminder to come back to the basics because *“relationships that you can create, preserve, and nurture with your own family and in the community”* are what matter most - Why the early-childhood years matter so much, how the Early Childhood Council of Boulder County fits in, and what it would look like to move away from handing parents a long list of resources toward a system that actually meets families where they are - Shifting the conversation from making parents more resilient to building communities that better support them, and why real resilience means accepting that hard things will happen, that we can't fix everything, and finding togetherness in witnessing that with each other - Celebrating diversity, culture, and community as part of the goal of this partnership, *“coming to the tables as equals,”* and why joy, play, music, and art matter right now because *“we are living in times where we need to relax, we need to reconnect to ourselves”* - The shame many parents feel about not doing or having enough, and why community care, celebrating small wins, and getting expert support all matter in countering that - What Melanie hopes for PEN's future, including her reflection that *“we have our own lives, but we also have more ways to connect with each other”*, and that sharing the pain of parenting is one of the most important things we can do - What Melanie and Marinela want a parent who is feeling overwhelmed or isolated to know, and how communities can best show up for families *“Something that Strengthening Families brings to the partnership with PEN is trust. The community trusts us, and that trust comes with years of being there and showing that what we say we offer is true.” — Marinela Maneiro-Goodwin* Resources Mentioned & Related Reading - Parent Engagement Network (PEN): connects parents with practical tools, expert resources, and community support, currently focused on resilient families, substance-use prevention, stress and anxiety, and parenting in a digital age. - Institute for Strengthening Families (IFF): provides Spanish-language and bilingual resources, programs, and videos for Spanish-speaking parents and caregivers, with a focus on substance-use prevention and strengthening families. - Early Childhood Council of Boulder County (ECCBC): works to strengthen the early-childhood system in Boulder County and helps families navigate child care and early-learning resources. - Boulder County Healthy Youth Alliance: a broader resource for parents on youth health, substance-use prevention, communication, and protective factors.