Overnight child care workers at CYC entrusted with looking after sleeping youngsters while their parents work late shift.
The Wyoming Valley Catholic Youth Center started receiving plenty of calls inquiring about overnight child care almost a decade ago.
According to Mark Soprano, CYC assistant executive director, child care at the center was extended to midnight beginning in 1999. In July 2001, the CYC became the first child care center in the state to offer overnight care. Overnight care runs from Monday night through Saturday morning. The children in the program range from 6 weeks to 13 years old.
Mary Johnson, overnight child care coordinator at the CYC, comes in at 10:30 p.m. to about 20 sleeping children. Most children do not spend the entire night and are awakened to go home during the night. At 12:30 a.m., aide Mardell Carter reports to work. By 5 a.m., only a few children from the overnight program remain.
“The little ones, it doesn’t bother them,” Johnson said. “School-agers complain because then they have to go home and get ready for school.”
Children sleep on mats on the floor at night with their own pillows and blankets. Infants and toddlers sleep in playpens. Johnson says the children sleep well and do not wake up crying for their parents during the night.
Aside from changing diapers and taking a child to the bathroom, the nighttime is generally quiet.
“We’re friendly, we’re homey, we make them feel at home,” Johnson said.
Amy Allardyce, evening child care coordinator at the CYC, is one of the workers who puts the children to bed every night at 8:30 p.m. The 35-year-old has a bachelor’s degree in social work and is completing her master’s degree in special education.
“You’d be surprised how quick the kids get used to it,” Allardyce said. “Some kids who have been here for years get their mat and are out.”
The bedtime routine includes a snack, going to the bathroom, and changing into pajamas. Lullabies are played, and the children are read a story. The children will talk a little after “lights out,” but are usually quick to fall asleep.
Most of the people who utilize the overnight care are single parents. The parents are typically nurses, nurse’s aides, pharmacists or work in a factory or other service job.
“We get tons of calls for overnight care,” Johnson said. “We’re surprised we don’t have more.”
Johnson, 44, is the mother of a 16-year-old and a 20-year-old. She has a bachelor’s degree in social work.
Carter recently began the overnight child care aide position. The 20-year-old says he enjoys taking care of children and has experience from babysitting relatives.
So far, the most important thing he learned is that he doesn’t think he’ll have children of his own anytime soon.
“Some kids could be bad and then you got the kids who are good,” Carter said.
“Then you get the ones who say, ‘My mother says I don’t have to listen to you,’ or you get the ones, who say, ‘My mother said we could stay up all night,’” Johnson added.
One of the biggest challenges at the child care center is for the three coordinators to communicate with each other about the children.
Johnson, Allardyce and morning child care coordinator Suzanne Homza have to make time to meet.
For the children, especially the older ones, the hardest aspect of overnight care is the lack of time spent at home due to being at school and child care.
Full article available at The Times Leader.