Guest post from Amanda Armenta, member of the FFNM Business Leadership Council

As New Mexico prepares to be fully open on July 1st and many families are starting to travel, scheduling backyard get-togethers and going to the movies, it’s important to remember that not all families have the same choices. We are grateful for the perspective of our Business Leadership Council member, Amanda A. for offering how we might all support each other as we move to the next phase of this pandemic that touches us all.

I’m just a parent standing in front of my community asking for grace.

The grace not to give me and my family strange looks as we wear our masks.

The grace to maybe join us in wearing masks in public until my whole family can join the ranks of the vaccinated.

You see, many of us have small children that are not yet eligible for a vaccine. Our community did a great job to rally around the most vulnerable populations in the beginning. Now we are asking for that same level of support for families with small children.

And as a parent, I’m giving myself the grace to try to figure out how to navigate the new world. Childcare, summer vacations, and social situations are just some of the many things on the minds of busy parents. All while trying to model mask wearing for our small kids. You see, I don’t feel good about asking them to do something I’m not doing. Add on the questioning and self-doubting thoughts that parents often have…should we go there? Is that person vaccinated? What are they missing out on? Did I unnecessarily expose them?

I have a child with serious medical conditions. Many people have someone in their family just like mine. It’s not something we can tell by looking at each other. So the ask is, let’s not leave anyone behind. As a community, as business leaders, as parents, as fellow citizens. If the weight has finally been lifted for you, remember that there are others in our community and around the world that are not quite there yet. Be gentle with yourselves and be gentle with each other. And hopefully, we can walk forward as better people than we were before.

Amanda Armenta, Business Leadership Council member

I was excited to be invited to join the FFNM Business Leadership Council. I am so grateful that our state has a dedicated program to recognize family friendly businesses and support all businesses in their efforts to be family friendly. Ultimately, it leads to better outcomes for our state’s students, employees, businesses and economy.