Loeta

Loeta is a dentist and a mother of two. While she was earning her dental degree, she commuted from Chico to San Francisco—3 hours each way—staying in an apartment in the city during the week. She kept up with everything happening at home via FaceTime, even "attending" family dinner night with her Peruvian-American parents and brother and helping her kids with their homework. Saturday morning she'd leave the city at 3:30am, returning home on time to make it to the kids' soccer and 4-H events. After Loeta earned her dental degree, she returned home to Chico and bought the practice where she began as a dental assistant at age 16.

It’s impossible to “do it all,” of course, but as a woman the cost of not trying is huge. Data from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research shows that over a 15-year period, women who took just one year off work earned a massive 39 percent less than women who did not take time off.

In the sculpture of her hours, Loeta’s paid work hours are represented by gold-leafed pieces and her unpaid work hours by silver-leafed pieces. Hours when Loeta was doing anything other than work are represented by empty spaces.