Leticia Ordaz, the Emmy-winning news anchor of Sacramento’s own KCRA3, is a storyteller in more ways than one. When we chat about a typical “day in the life” for her, the passion and commitment she has for her journalistic craft and literacy is compelling. I mean, who would get up at 2 a.m. if they didn’t care about their job? 

What does a typical day look like for you?

I’m on the morning shift so am up at 2 a.m., and my [official] shift starts at about 3:30 a.m. Viewers think that we have a whole “glam squad” going on, but no: I do my own hair and makeup. If I’m on the desk as anchor, I’m reading what other people have written for me, but I still review and read through everything. I’m the one delivering the news to our community and want to make sure I know what I’ll be saying and the subject matter.  

If I’m out reporting then I don’t always know where I’ll be going, but I have a bag of clothes in my car ready for all eventualities; it wouldn’t be wise for me to be in the high heels that I might wear in the studio at the scene of a fire or on rail tracks, for example.   

The TV part of my day finishes around noon, unless there’s a rolling story or something dramatic is happening.  

You must be tired at that point of the day.

Then, my second day starts! I might be talking about my books [Leticia is an award-winning author] in a school or getting ready to pick up my sons, at which time my day as a mom begins. When I see them—Maxton, 13, and Bronx, 10—I get a second wind. I’m there for them at their after-school activities, making dinner, helping with homework, etc. Generally, I go to bed about 10 p.m. I’m lucky I don’t need much sleep, and I do confess to drinking a lot of coffee! With that said, I love the fast pace of my job and the crazy schedule—I can work and be a mom. 

I can’t believe that in these busy days you find time to write award-winning children’s books. Tell us more.

I’m Mexican American, and my husband and I wanted to raise our sons to be bilingual in Spanish and English. For the first two years of their lives, we solely spoke Spanish at home; however, we found it hard to find good-quality bilingual books for children, so I decided to write my own.  

I approached a big publisher who said they didn’t like the bilingual angle; in fact, they told me that Latinos couldn’t read! So, I found some great mentors in the industry and set up my own publishing company, Cielito Lindo Books. I publish bilingual picture books for children and am proud to say that I’m a 10-time award-winning author at the International Latino Book Awards. My first book, The Adventures of Mr. Macaw, won four awards, which were extra special as I won against the big publisher who’d turned me down! 

Inspiration for books comes from my own life and that of my kids and sometimes we brainstorm ideas. In fact, my youngest, recently won three international awards by writing an anti-bullying book. He had an ambitious idea five years ago and wanted to write a book to inspire a kindness movement. In February, we published his book Super Peanut and the Big Bully: The Power of Kindness. It’s been a huge hit with schools across the country. 

What has been the impact of your books, aside from inspiring your children? 

I used to translate English books into Spanish while I was reading to my children, but now families don’t have to do that. They can read together and that’s particularly important where, say, the parents aren’t confident English speakers or perhaps even illiterate. Grandparents can read to grandchildren; siblings can read to each other—it’s a beautiful thing. 

I wanted to break the stereotypes surrounding Latinos and show them as engineers and scientists. Children not only see themselves represented in these books, but they can aspire to be like the characters. I want Latino children to think, ‘I, too, can go to space one day.’ 

Tell us more about what you do in the community.

I visit schools and host literacy assemblies where I introduce myself and read my stories to the children. Often the schools are in less fortunate communities, so I might give out books for free; for some families, it may be the first book in their home. Hopefully we’re starting their children off as readers, and by showing them an author who looks like them, serving as an inspiration.  

Favorite restaurant: I love Zócalo! Their food is authentically Mexican, and it’s nice to have a taste of home.  I know the owners, too; supporting small businesses is so important!

What’s your favorite item on the menu? Their tacos de hongos (vegetarian mushroom tacos).

What’s your favorite way to relax?  I have an Orangetheory Fitness membership but struggle to find the time to go! Honestly, my favorite way to relax is to hang out with my children and family.  

As an author, who are your favorite Latino authors and your favorite books? My favorite children’s book authors are my sons, Maxton and Bronx, but aside from them, Isabel Quintero who wrote My Papi Has a Motorcycle. For adults, I like Xochitl Gonzalez and her novels Olga Dies Dreaming and Anita de Monte Laughs Last.

by Caroline Kings
Photos courtesy of Leticia Ordaz.