First Spouses routinely convene at the annual NGA Winter Meeting to hold meetings with philanthropic and government leaders and elevate the initiatives they are leading in their states and territories. This past weekend First Spouses led four policy sessions, including a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins.
Food Security Discussion with Secretary Rollins
At the 2025 NGA Winter Meeting, First Spouses welcomed Secretary Rollins for a discussion on food security, an issue of significant importance to Americans across the country, with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) research finding 18 million households were food insecure at some time during 2023. Secretary Rollins spoke with First Spouses about ways states and territories can work with USDA to address food insecurity, including collaborating on bipartisan policies to address childhood hunger and improve nutrition.
Following the Secretary’s remarks, the session featured a panel discussion with Eddie Oliver, Executive Director, Federation of Virginia Food Banks; Craig Rice, CEO, Manna Food Center; and Eleni Towns, Associate Director, No Kid Hungry. The panelists focused their remarks on the work nonprofits lead across the country to combat food insecurity. The panelists also highlighted examples of simple, bipartisan measures First Spouses can advocate for to bolster the work of their organizations, such as ensuring all farmers markets accept SNAP cards (also known as EBT or food stamps) and improving nutrition education.
Animal-Assisted Therapy
Colorado First Gentleman Marlon Reis led a session focused on the benefits of animal-assisted therapy, noting the subject reflects an extension of the work he has been leading in Colorado to promote animal welfare and raise awareness about the interconnections between people, animals and the environment.
First Gentleman Reis welcomed three experts to share information about animal-assisted therapy: Dr. Kimberly Hoagwood, Professor Emerita of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine; Meghan Morrissey, a licensed clinical social worker and licensed addictions counselor who integrates equine interactions into mental health therapy; and Lauren Seibel, Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor.
Mr. Reis and the panelists began the session explaining that animal-assisted therapy is a form of mental health treatment that brings animals, such as horses and dogs, into therapeutic work done with people. The panelists then focused on the powerful healing people of all ages and backgrounds can experience when working with an animal, sharing examples of work their respective organizations are leading, including research studies that track measures such as reduced levels of stress found in people who participated in anima-assisted therapy. The speakers stressed that research about the benefits of animal-assisted therapy can help encourage more people in need to consider the treatment. The research can also encourage more Americans to enter the profession, helping fill a nationwide need for more providers, while also helping expand funding and reimbursement possibilities for the treatment option.
Strategic Partnerships
Ohio First Lady Fran DeWine and Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt led a session to showcase examples of ways First Spouses can collaborate and partner with nonprofit organizations to help further the goals of their initiatives. They stressed that partnering with nonprofit organizations can stand as one of the most impactful ways to elevate a cause, noting it enables First Spouses to leverage the contacts, resources, awareness campaigns and research of organizations.
Mrs. DeWine welcomed Jeff Conyers, President of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, to illustrate examples of how she has successfully partnered with the organization to expand the program, which provides books free of charge to children from birth to age five, across Ohio. Mrs. Stitt introduced David Hansell, Senior Advisor for Child Welfare Policy of Casey Family Programs, to discuss examples of the strategies her office has been leading to partner with the nonprofit organization to further her efforts to advocate for those suffering from mental health issues and adverse childhood experiences.
Leveraging the Influence of Trusted Messengers
Maryland First Lady Dawn Moore joined a panel discussion focused on identifying trusted messengers to help raise awareness about First Spouses’ initiatives and advocacy campaigns. The other panelists included: Kate Emanuel, Chief Business Operations & Strategy Officer, Ad Council; Justin Hutchinson, Director of Business Development, ThreeSixtyEight; and Alex Tillmann, Vice President at Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis.
Mrs. Moore and the panelists stressed that Americans increasingly look to voices they consider to be authentic when seeking information, including about information related to many of the issues First Spouses advocate for, such as Mrs. Moore’s initiatives focus on children’s mental health, military families and the arts. When Americans seek information, they indicate they want to hear from authentic voices. The panelists noted these individuals are considered trusted messengers. The panelist shared that Governors and First Spouses are seen as trusted messengers – as are community leaders like teachers, medical professionals, religious leaders and business owners.
The panelists encouraged First Spouses to use their platform as trusted messengers as an important tool to help raise awareness about their priorities and platform. The panelists also encouraged First Spouses to identify other trusted messengers as potential collaborators who could help amplify First Spouses’ messages about priority issues.
To help illustrate the power of working with trusted messengers, the panelists shared an Ad Council national campaign launched to help change the narrative around the value of workers who are skilled through alternative routes. The campaign features panelist Justin Hutchinson as a trusted messenger who shares his inspiring story to help underscore campaign’s key messages.
NGA’s Program for First Spouses
Over the years, the role of First Spouse has evolved considerably, with the spouses and partners of Governors often using their platforms to create and implement initiatives that champion causes that closely impact the residents of their states and territories. Each First Spouse has latitude to shape the role, and First Spouses often lead efforts to manage their state’s official Governor’s Residence, participate in ceremonial occasions and serve as ambassadors for their home state. In support of their work NGA maintains a program for the spouses and partners of the nation’s Governors, learn more at: https://www.nga.org/governors/spouses/.
