Long before Ms. Rachel, Circle Time with Ms. Monica, and Caitie’s Classroom, there was Miss Nancy of Romper Room, a show that first aired live from Baltimore, Maryland in 1953. Co-created and produced by Nancy Claster and her husband, Bert, the show offered free public early childhood education across the country, and eventually all around the world, through a network of teachers, trained as hosts to appear on air via their own local TV stations.

In 2024, I had the honor of looking through the magic mirror and visiting with four Romper Room teachers:

• Florence "Miss Florence" Petheram; Spokane, Washington, on KREM and KHQ, from 1958-1982.

• Margaret “Miss Margaret” Lloyd; Fairbanks, Alaska on KTVF, followed by Seattle/Tacoma, Washington, from 1963-1974.

• Karen “Miss Karen” Robbins; Rochester, New York on WOKR from 1968-1969.

• Molly “Miss Molly” McCloskey Barber; Baltimore, Maryland on WMAR, in 1981, then Secaucus, New Jersey until 1987. Nationally syndicated as Romper Room and Friends, the program aired until 1994.

The combined wisdom of these extraordinary women is exactly what we need to hear in this shared social moment. So sit up straight, use your best DoBee manners, and listen carefully. Maybe one of these Romper Room teachers will look through her Magic Mirror and say your name!

Today, I'm talking with Suzie Hicks, the creator and host of Suzie Hicks, The Climate Chick. The series is the first of its kind, breaking barriers to demystify and inspire future generations. Most importantly, their focus is on the generations that are going to be impacted by the climate change advocacy of today.

Suzie and I recorded this conversation on January 11, 2025. This past week, Los Angeles California has been devastated by the worst wildfires of its history, destroying entire communities and displacing thousands of people. At the time of this recording, the fires are still burning and people are coming together to help one another. Suz lives in LA. They were in a safe place and able to talk about their mission on and off the screen and what they wanted to communicate to support children and their grownups in this moment of climate crises.

You can learn more about Suzie and Suzie Hicks, The Climate Chick at https://www.suziehickstheclimatechick.com/ You can also follow them on social media. As Suzie said, "Feel your feelings and then take action. It is the antidote for despair."

Links to support those impacted by the LA Wildfires at the time of this podcast release are listed below.

https://www.redcross.org/

https://wck.org/

https://supportlafd.kindful.com/?campaign=1040812

https://www.lafoodbank.org/fire/

https://cpf.salsalabs.org/disasterrelief/index.html

On this episode of Cookies for Breakfast, recorded early in 2022, I am joined by my friend and mentor, Eliot Daley. Eliot played a significant role in the early development of the classic children’s television series, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. As friend and partner to Fred Rogers, Eliot served as president of Small World Enterprises, Inc. and Executive Vice President of Family Communications, Inc. (the precursors to Fred Rogers Productions.) He co-wrote several scripts with Fred Rogers under the guidance of Dr. Margaret McFarland. We talk in great detail about that process from concept, to refinement and delivery. We also reflect upon the importance of friendship and mentorship, bridging generational knowledge to meet the social-emotional needs of the day. We also discuss parallels between the challenges of early television communication, present-day interactive screens and the potential futures of communication in the daily lives of children and adults. His time working on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in the early 1970s, dramatically deepened his understanding of what it means to bring out the best in others. Consequently, he has adopted a favorite definition of love: “to yearn for the fulfillment of another person on their own terms”. We can see this reflected in his regular essays, which can be found through his website, The Daley Almanac. I’m deeply thankful to have Eliot Daley in my life. I hope you enjoy our conversation.