ROCKVILLE, Md., May 18, 2023—The featured guests on this week’s En Sintonía con el Concejo del Condado de Montgomery (In Tune with the Montgomery County Council) will include Montgomery County Councilmember Natali Fani-González, who serves as the chair of the Council's Economic Development (ECON) Committee; Liana Vega, family childcare recruitment coordinator from the Child Care Support Services at Early Childhood Services within the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and John Sánchez, Financial Empowerment Center (FEC) program manager at Housing Initiative Partnership, Inc. The show will air tomorrow, May 19 at 2 p.m. on Radio America (WILC 900AM) and is streamed on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. 

This week’s edition will begin with special guest Councilmember Fani-González who will discuss her top legislative priorities for the year. In her first term as the councilmember representing District 6, and as the chair of the ECON Committee, her priorities include establishing protections against rent-gouging, increasing Montgomery County’s Rental Assistance Program and allocating funds to support first-time homebuyers and homeowners at risk of foreclosure. 

The second part of the show will focus on Montgomery County’s Child Care Support Services. Its mission is to connect comprehensive services that support and build a successful childcare delivery system through coaching, professional development and individual support. Community members interested in becoming a family childcare provider can enroll in classes to receive the support needed to operate a successful business that is sustainable and helps prepare children for developmental and preschool success. Ms. Vega will discuss the registration, licensing and criminal background checks process.  

Financial management strategies will also be discussed. The Gaithersburg Financial Empowerment Center is currently providing free one-on-one financial coaching. If your goal is financial stability, their team can help develop an action plan to save money for a house, pay down debt, connect with low cost banking or improve your credit score. Mr. Sánchez will discuss the registration process, as well as in-person and virtual appointments available in English, Spanish and other languages. 

The Council and Radio America have entered a partnership that provides the Latino community with key information on issues and programs. The partnership also provides a forum for residents to express their views and ask questions. The partnership includes the weekly one-hour show each Friday on the Washington metropolitan area’s most popular Spanish language station.     

Each week, the show features host Marcela Rodriguez, Council program manager and public information officer, and guests talking about important issues before the Council and provides information about programs offered by the County to help residents.

# # #