Parents’ Salvation Re-Opened Child-Care Program A Blessing For Working Moms, Dads
These days, Ron Ballentine usually wakes up with a smile and tells his dad, “I’m going to school today!”
But mornings weren’t always so easy. Ron’s father Jon remembers just over a month ago, fighting to get his 2-year-old out the door and himself to work on time.
Since he enrolled Ron in The Salvation Army’s child-care program, however, things are different.
“It’s a really neat place,” Ballentine said. “As a single father, (child care) fills a special need for me. I have to depend on them to continue Ron on the path I want him to be on.”
Recently re-opened as Kid’s Junction, The Salvation Army’s program is one of the newest North Side options for all-day and after-school child care. And with its vacation and summer programs and transportation to area elementary schools, Kid’s Junction helps fill several gaps in the potholed path of child care.
A fixture on the North Side for more than 20 years, The Salvation Army operated a child care center for almost a decade. In May 1997, the program was forced to close, leaving the parents of more than 100 children looking for child care.
A fixture on the North Side for more than 20 years, The Salvation Army operated a child care center for almost a decade. In May 1997, the program was forced to close, leaving the parents of more than 100 children looking for child care.
“The program folded due to lack of funding and the need for refurbishment of the facility,” said Deanna Boggs, who handles community relations for The Salvation Army.
Back then, the Kidsclub program operated under a different payment contract with the Department of Social and Health Services - one that worked indirectly with parents and guardians.
“Unfortunately, it became the habit of many to disregard making their portion of the payment. …” Boggs said.
Now, DSHS works directly with parents and the whole payment program has been restructured to ensure that problem doesn’t happen again.
Also, just before the closure, state health inspectors found a cook supplementing the child care lunch program with canned goods from the Spokane Food Bank. The USDA food program requires stricter guidelines.
The current policy is to purchase all food according to the USDA nutrition plan.
Now, the program has a new name and a new staff. Kid’s Junction staff members think little about past problems, except to give a nod to the opportunity they provided.
“(Closing down) allowed us to remodel and restructure the program,” said Capt. Donna Hooft, child care director.
Kid’s Junction has capacity for 93 kids through age 12, including up to eight infants (1-11 months). Before, the program was only open to kids in preschool through kindergarten.
“This inclusive program reduces stress by allowing parents to have all their kids in one spot,” Hooft said. “They don’t have to worry about taking their infants one place and toddlers another.”
For Celina Curtis, mother of a 4-year-old and a 7-month-old, that makes all the difference.
“There are not that many places that take infants,” she said. “And if they do, they’re full.”
Kathy Thamm, program manager for Family Care Resources, a child care placement agency, knows that complaint well.
“There are always shortages of slots for infants and toddlers,” she said. “There are always shortages of child care on weekends, before 6 a.m. and after 6 p.m.”
Kid’s Junction offers some help in the area of odd-hours care needs. Parents can drop off their children as early as 6:30 a.m. and can pick them up at late as 7 p.m. The program also offers care on early-release days, during school vacations and the summer on a space-available basis.
Unlike most other child care programs, Kid’s Junction provides transportation to and from eight area elementary schools: Audubon, Bemiss, Cooper, Garfield, Logan, Longfellow, Stevens and Willard.
It is that alliance with public schools that sets Kid’s Junction apart from other child care centers.
Hooft knows it’s hard for kids of working parents to join after-school activities, so The Salvation Army offers them full use of their facilities, including a heated indoor swimming pool and gymnasium. Kids can take part in cooking and music classes as well as scouting programs.
Inside the building at 222 E. Indiana, all the classrooms and play areas have new paint and new carpet. The rooms are light and clean, if occasionally strewn with toys. During nap time, children snuggle under blankets on tiny, light blue cots.
Hooft said her main concern is safety. The building has electronically locking doors and cameras throughout - something that puts many parents’ minds at ease.
“They ask for ID at the front desk if they don’t know your face,” Curtis explained. “And you can’t get in (the classrooms) unless they buzz you back.”
“It’s the safest day care I’ve found in the city,” added Ballentine, who’s had his son in and out of four other North Side centers. “And the staff genuinely care about the children.”
Nineteen staff members look after small groups of kids, conducting story time, helping build clay figures and checking math homework.
“When kids get home, mom is tired,” Hooft said. “Often there’s no time to cook, let alone help with homework.”
During lunch, kids work on their table manners, saying “yes” and “no” and making polite conversation. Hooft has found that many kids do not learn these skills at home.
“Families rarely eat together anymore,” she said. “And if they do, it’s in front of the TV.”
A Christian organization, The Salvation Army offers a Christian-based curriculum. The program works hard to fill the children’s days with something meaningful.
“We want to impact a child’s life,” Boggs said. “We want to instill a love for reading and social interaction.”