Breanna
Health and Safety Coordinator at KinderCare
Breanna is a single mother, teacher, and a health and safety coordinator at KinderCare. She has a 6-year-old son, Tucker, in the kindergarten class at her center. Tucker had a hard time when he started school, but his teacher at KinderCare never gave up on him. Listen to the story of how this family of two found their footing in unstable times.
"I think a lot of parents can relate to one another right now. We’re supposed to know everything. We're supposed to be able to navigate these little ones through all their paths. 2020 is a path I don't think anyone feels confident to navigate.
So, we came to KinderCare––and I think it was the first day. He had some really, really big emotions and he flipped a chair and hit his teacher. I just felt sick in my chest and just the pit in my stomach. I said to myself "Oh no, this is it, this is going to be it. He'll have to go somewhere else. What am I going to do?" I'm a single mother so there's the "How am I going to juggle work? How am I going to find a new place for him?"
"But, his teacher actually sat down with me and wanted to know more about him––more about his interests, more about how he ticks. And in that moment, I knew that she cared, and she wasn't going to let him fail."
But, his teacher actually sat down with me and wanted to know more about him––more about his interests, more about how he ticks. And in that moment, I knew that she cared, and she wasn't going to let him fail.
That was my shining moment, and I started to see it all around the school. Every teacher here cares genuinely about these children. They spend all day with them, and they love them like their own.
My son and I have been here for over a year now. He's in the kindergarten class. It's been a godsend––it's been our security in 2020. He needs that one-on-one and that's something that KinderCare has definitely given us.
I'm actually the health and safety coordinator for the building. In the early days, we were all just blindsided by COVID—it came at us fast. And all of a sudden, we had to start taking temperatures, keeping logs, using illness trackers, even down to our wellness-check station.
As a mother, we did make that decision to stay and I'm glad we did. I remember the first day that my son had to wear a mask. He asked all the questions – "How long do I have to wear it? Why do we wear masks?" And I tried to explain, you know, "You're being a hero by wearing this." And the sparkle in his eye when I called him a hero—everything clicked for him.
From the bottom of my heart, our mind frame is, we’re helping people help people."
