When Grace turned eight in January 2018 she was inpatient and still healing from her bone marrow transplant due to her relapsed cancer. Cancer that may have been caused by the Santa Susana Field Lab’s nuclear meltdown, five miles from our home. We tried as hard as we could to make her birthday special, but how special can it be for a little girl stuck in a hospital bed with a 103 fever who wasn’t allowed to have friends, or even her brother, visit?

Thank goodness that year is behind us. This year’s birthday was the happiest I’ve seen my daughter in over a year. Family and friends, games, cake, being cancer-free… it really was the best birthday party ever! Gracie’s smile was a healing balm to my bruised heart.

I’m so glad to have started this year in such a positive way. Especially since I know our fight for the 100% cleanup of the Santa Susana Field Lab will continue. The good news is the Department for Toxic Substance Control didn’t finalize their “cleanup manual,” aka Environmental Impact Report (EIR), last December, like we were worried about.

That gives Gov. Gavin Newsom the opportunity to review and revise the document before it becomes official...and thank goodness for that! The draft version would have allowed Boeing, NASA and the Department of Energy to leave 80-90% of the radioactive and chemical carcinogens in our community...permanently!

Now we REALLY need Gov. Newsom to appoint a tough reformer to head up the Department for Toxic Substance Control. WIthout a strong reformer as the Director of DTSC, we’re not likely to see any improvements with the site’s cleanup, nor will any other communities impacted by toxins throughout the state.

Please call Gov. Newsom’s office at (916) 445-2841 and ask him to appoint a strong reformer to be the Director of the Department of Toxic Substance Control, someone who will dramatically reform this troubled agency and hold the polluters to their legal obligations for the 100% cleanup of the Santa Susana Field Lab.