About us

Day One has 30 years of experience in working alongside residents, young people, elected officials, and other stakeholders to strengthen and build healthy, vibrant communities by advancing public health, advocating for public policies, meaningfully engaging youth, and igniting community-level and behavioral change.

Through the years Day One’s work has earned the organization countless awards, an increase in grant funding, and most importantly key public health policy victories that help address issues of inequity, social justice, bias, tokenism, and social determinants of health among vulnerable, underserved communities.

The agency and its staff are noted leaders in youth advocacy, community engagement and coalition building, policy development and advocacy, and environmental health in the San Gabriel Valley. Our team is skilled in conducting outreach, facilitating community meetings, forming coalitions, and sharing, leading, and implementing community-driven strategies to prevent chronic disease and promote healthy, active communities through evidence-based policy and public health-oriented city/urban planning.

Mission

Our agency’s mission is to build vibrant, healthy cities by advancing public health, empowering youth, and igniting change.

Vision

Our vision is to create a healthy, connected, vibrant world.

Mission | Vision

Meet the Team

Christy Zamani

Executive Director
A graduate and former Student Body President of California State University Long Beach, Christy Zamani has served as Day One Executive Director since 2007. Christy brings over 15 years of hands-on experience in public policy, community health and youth leadership development to Day One. A Pasadena resident, Christy also is a Board Member for Leadership Pasadena and a member of Vision 20/20, City Conversations and the Asset Development Network.

Jazmin Jimenez

Director of Operations

Jazmin Jimenez is a Pasadena native and has been involved. She holds a Master in Public Administration from Cal State LA and is a UCLA Alumni, with a B.A. in Sociology and a minor in Chicano/Chicana Studies. Jazmin has been with Day One since 2008, starting as a Youth Advocate and being in the following roles: Administrative Assistance to the Executive Director, Prevention Coordinator and now as a Director of Operations. Jazmin enjoys working out and watching the Dodgers play during baseball season!

Claudia Hathcock

Director Of Environmental
Prevention Strategies

Claudia is a Pasadena native and a former Youth Advocate (2006 - 2008). She attended UC Davis and received her B.A. in History with a minor in Political Science. She is currently working on her MPH at California Baptist University. As the Director of Environmental Prevention Strategies at Day One, she is committed to empowering communities to engage in policy making and reducing youth access to alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs through education, advocacy, and youth engagement. Claudia currently serves as the Vice-chair for Rethinking Access to Marijuana, a Los Angeles County wide coalition of prevention leaders committed to reducing youth access to marijuana, minimizing exposure to marijuana, and addressing the unintended harms associated with marijuana legalization.

In her free time she enjoys exploring her community, checking out local restaurants, and listening to audiobooks.

Jennifer Jimenez

Director of Prevention Programs

Jennifer Jimenez was raised in the city of Pasadena and attended Pasadena Unified School District schools. She is the Prevention Programs Director for the Comprehensive Prevention Services at Day One. She is bilingual, and a native Spanish speaker. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in Education from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Jennifer is a Day One Youth Advocate alumni and has been consistently involved with Day One for over 11 years. She began working at Day One as an Outreach Coordinator for the Advanced Energy Community project in the Bassett and Avocado Heights area. She also served as the Bicycle Outreach Coordinator and has over 2 years of experience working with Champions for Change/CalFresh programs as a Health Educator in El Monte. Jennifer has supervised the implementation of approximately 150 nutrition classes, started the installation of the first community garden at the Jeff Seymour Family Center, and coordinated various walking audits with Youth Advocates from El Monte Unified School District. She currently focuses on Substance Abuse Prevention among youth and adults in the Pasadena area. She also works closely with Pasadena Unified School District students where she provides students with safe spaces and resources through our Youth Advocate Program, Life Skills Social Emotional Education , Project Sticker Shock Internship, and Summer SKILLZ program. She is committed to amplifying youth voices and advocating for social justice issues in her community. Jennifer is a very active person whom you will find running at the Rosebowl or along the Arroyo Seco trails every day. She loves to travel, eat delicious food, horseback ride under the sunset, and dance in her cowboy boots. She is a unique individual that strives to be a champion in her own personal life by maintaining wellness and inspiring others to start up a healthier lifestyle.

Nenetzin Rodriguez

Project Director

Nenetzin is a Project Director at Day One. She grew up in Rancho Cucamonga near Mt. Baldy. She graduated from the University of California, Riverside with a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology and a Minor in Music. She holds a Master's in Public Administration from California State University, Los Angeles. She is an AmeriCorps alumni through City Year and CSU STEM VISTA. She is a former Congressional Fellow for Congressman Jimmy Gomez of CA 34th District and a Research Assistant for Cal State LA's Political Science Department. Her passion for public policy, social/environmental justice, and education led her to join the Day One team in 2017. Since then she has worked on various projects in substance abuse prevention, environmental policy, active transportation, clean energy, food waste, conservation for our public lands, and sustainability. Nenetzin enjoys listening to all genres of music from around the world. If she isn’t playing with her cat Frankie, she is either biking to her local farmer’s market, reading maps, baking yummy desserts or sipping coffee at a café with her best friend Jenny. Her most prideful accomplishment is being the first female from both sides of her family to receive her Master's.

Daniel Fong

Director of Regional Violence Prevention Coalitions

Daniel is a testament to a homegrown leader, not just of Pasadena but the San Gabriel Valley! Daniel has always been very involved with sports and after-school programs since elementary school. Through his involvement he has successfully networked with many organizations and mentors throughout the San Gabriel Valley. This is how he came to be a part of Day One in 2008 as a High School Youth Advocate. During his time as a Youth Advocate, Daniel assisted in various campaigns and ordinances for Pasadena and surrounding cities including a city wide Smoke-Free outdoor dining ordinance for the city of Pasadena. The public speaking skills, networking, advocacy, and knowledge of local governments he gained at Day One assisted him in earning his Bachelor's Degree of Science in Sociology with an emphasis on Law and Society from California State University, Los Angeles. With over 10 years of community engagement, Daniel has since worked at various organizations throughout Los Angeles including Active SGV, become an American League of Bicyclists League Certified Instructor (LCI), alumni of Leadership Pasadena, and most recently chaired the Los Angeles County wide Rethinking Access to Marijuana (RAM) coalitions media committee. He is currently the Director of the Regional Violence Prevention Coalition at Day One and wholeheartedly believes in, and is a testament to, Day One's mission to build local youth into powerful leaders.

Alisha Lopez

Tobacco Prevention Director

Alisha was born in Long Beach, CA where she witnessed firsthand the many health disparities that exist in communities of color. Her desire to create change began at a very young age with her own personal experiences seeing the toll alcohol, tobacco and substance abuse takes on families, especially children. She is a graduate of Los Angeles Valley College with an Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts and plans to return to school in Fall 2022 to complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Policy. She brings 25 years of public health experience in both the non-profit and public sector. She has almost two decades of experience with community organizing in the tobacco control and prevention policy arena. She served as Chair of the Coalition for a Tobacco Free LA County from June 2007-June 2009, and Chair of the Pasadena Tobacco Prevention Coalition from May 2016-May 2018, further building upon her leadership skills. She enjoys working with communities towards health policies that seek to change the social norms around alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. When she’s not working in communities creating change, she enjoys writing and performing music, cooking, dancing, and spending time with her family.

Carly Lopez

Prevention Programs Coordinator

Carly received her Bachelor of Science degree in Health Sciences with a focus on Public Health Promotion from California State University, Northridge. After discovering Day One through an internship course her senior year at CSUN, she joined the team in 2018 and developed her passion for teaching health through nutrition education and obesity prevention as a Health Educator. As a resident of the San Gabriel Valley for over 10 years, she is proud to impact local youth. During her time at Day One over the last four years, she has worked under grants as a Health Educator and Project Coordinator. Under a Healthy Communities Initiative grant focusing on Calfresh Health Living promotion, she conducted over 150 nutrition classes, 200 healthy recipe demonstrations for students and families, and successfully launched activities for students of all ages across the San Gabriel Valley. Most recently as a Project Coordinator as part of the Substance Abuse Prevention and Control team, she has worked to reduce underage drinking and youth access to alcohol in the City of El Monte through an alcohol prevention campaign, Project Sticker Shock. Her passions include educating youth on healthy habits and working to create safe and equitable communities. In her free time she enjoys playing video games, spending time at the beach, and going to concerts and music festivals.

Jerry De Vries

Health Policy Coordinator

After earning a bachelor’s degree in Public Health Policy and a minor in Medical Anthropology from UC Irvine, Jerry sought to put into practice what he learned in the classroom, which brought him to Day One. Jerry’s education in public health and anthropology has supplied him with the ability and knowledge to examine natural and social determinants of health that affect various communities and populations. Additionally, his studies have helped him with understanding the way health issues and illnesses are prevented and treated cross-culturally. As Health Policy Coordinator, Jerry is responsible for facilitating and implementing policy campaign activities focused on reducing various health disparities in the San Gabriel Valley. Outside of the office, Jerry enjoys going to music shows, watching scary movies, and traveling.

Colin Bogart

Active Transportation Director

Colin grew up in the suburbs of Los Angeles and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and Fine Arts at Loyola Marymount University. Following college, he lived in Prague and San Francisco where he experienced what it means to live in a walkable city with good public transportation. After returning to Los Angeles, he bought a bicycle and his transformation into an active transportation advocate began. Initially a volunteer for the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC), he became a full time staff member of LACBC in 2008, where he worked for 11 years; first on a grant-funded project in Glendale and then as Education Director. He’s a certified League Cycling Instructor (LCI) and has coordinated multiple LCI training seminars through the League of American Bicyclists. He moved to Pasadena in 2015 with his partner, Jennie, and their three cats. Colin is a Steering Committee member for the Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition, through which he connected with Day One. When he’s not riding his bike or taking walks with Jennie, he enjoys cooking, gardening, visiting with friends and neighbors, and listening to music or podcasts.

Maritza Cristantos

Community Engagement Coordinator

Maritza graduated from California State University Los Angeles, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology with an emphasis in rehabilitation and therapeutic exercise. She brings over eight years of experience in community-based organizations and development. She has worked for the community service and development department in two cities, the City of Pomona and the City of West Covina, where she worked closely with residents and community service coordinators to create culturally sensitive events. She volunteered at two community-based exercise clinics at California State University, Los Angeles, where she designed and implemented therapeutic exercises and health-related education courses for residents with varying physical and mental disabilities. Along with the clinical skills that she attained in school, she was the lead exercise trainer for a rehabilitation program at the Anne Douglas Center of the Los Angeles Mission for two years. She empowered women to adopt positive coping mechanisms, stress management, and other coping strategies to help address mental health and substance abuse disorders. She enjoys exploring new hiking trails and trying new boba shops in her free time!

Cristal Oliveros

Health Policy Coordinator

Cristal was raised in North West Pasadena and attended PUSD schools. She continued her education at the University of California, Irvine, where she earned her bachelor's degree in Criminology, Law, and Society with a minor in Urban Studies. Cristal has advocated for underrepresented populations throughout Orange County and the greater San Gabriel Valley for four years and counting. Currently, she is an MSW recipient and will be completing her master's program soon. She is looking forward to advocating and empowering the communities she serves. Her hobbies include trying new foods, traveling, exploring coffee shops, and listening to music.

Ashley Carrasco

Preventions Program Coordinator

Ashley Carrasco is a Pasadena native who received her Bachelors in Business Administration with a minor in Public Art. She is passionate about creating change in the Pasadena community and is co-chair of the local organization, Hood Liberation who focuses on community healing and economic justice. Today she is the Preventions Program Coordinator for Day One where she creates safe spaces for youth in the community and provides resources to PUSD Families. Ashley works closely with our middle school and high school students through our Youth Advocate Program, Life Skills Social Emotional Education , and our internship programs.

Robert Aceves

Active Transportation Outreach Assistant

Krystle Yu

Active Transportation Outreach Assistant

Angelique Lopez

Equity Coordinator

Angelique is a San Fernando Valley native. She is passionate for social change and igniting change to generate a more equitable and inclusive society. She attended California State University, Long Beach and received her Bachelors of Arts in Sociology. Since then, Angelique has interned at Day One with the Tobacco Control and Prevention Program and Project Sticker Shock. Currently, she leads as the Equity Coordinator for Day Ones' newest initiative, TOMA (Take Opportunities, Maximize Access), to help alleviate poverty for low-income communities by increasing the awareness of refundable tax credits and free tax preparation opportunities.

When not working, Angelique enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and exploring new restaurants and coffee shops.

Evangelica Child

Health Policy Liaison

Evangelica was a former SKILLZ student and Day One Youth Advocate who graduated Pasadena High School in 2016. She has been working as a Day One volunteer for 5 years and finally joined the Day One Staff team in 2019. Evangelica has worked on Project Sticker Shock since joining the team and has worked with local retailers in Altadena and now El Monte which she now works alongside Carly Lopez, working with college interns and El Monte liquor stores to reduce youth access to alcohol. She also works with the El Monte Youth Advocate program to build a more connected city as well and guide youth into finding their voice in public matters as the voices of their city. When Evangelica is not working she attends Pasadena City College as a full time student. She loves to do things like travel, go to music festivals, explore new foods and explore new forms of art.

James Cortés-Rivera

Volunteer Coordinator

James was raised in Mexico before migrating to Los Angeles. In LA, he has lived in the communities of south LA where he is socially active. He studied at UC Berkeley and most recently worked as a project manager for a design company which serves businesses with an environmentally conscious agenda. He has also been part of several organizations seeking to improve the lives of marginalized communities in LA. In his free time, he loves reading and writing. He also enjoys traveling and experiencing new places and cultures.