Twice a week, I join the ranks of legions of parents and grandparents who entrust the smallest members of their families to the care of others, people working in day care centers or in private homes who teach, protect, nurture, guide and comfort the children we love.
Last Friday, May 9, was National Child Care Provider Appreciation Day. And while this tribute is a little late, it is no less sincere. I simply don't know how I would have managed without the skilled hands of the child-care providers I've been privileged to know.
Over the years, a handful of local child-care providers have made headlines -- and not for good reasons. But for every provider accused of abusive behavior, imagine an army of competent, well-trained, caring individuals who help make this community -- this country -- work, often for far less than what the parents and grandparents of their young charges make. These good people might not make headlines, but they are vital to the upbringing of our most important asset.
Still, child-care providers -- and those who send their children to them -- often have to defend themselves against criticism from others who have heard the horror stories but have no real experience with day care. Comments I've heard over the years suggest that some people think of day-care centers as impersonal, germ-laden factories where children are plunked down in front of a TV set and fed junk food.
And perhaps, somewhere out there, such places do exist.
Maybe I've just been lucky, but my experience with child care in our community has been nothing but positive. Far from being impersonal institutions where children do little more than spread disease and veg out in front of a television, the child-care centers and programs I've known have been places of high standards where the children in my life have been privileged to spend time with well-trained people who understand them. And who care -- really care.
It surprises some people that the time children spend in day-care centers is much more than "free play" time. These are learning environments where even very small children can develop the ability to get along with others.