When Sheri Ayubi came out of retirement to help start Blue Heron Montessori School eight years ago, she saw a need for more affordable child care in Bellingham, Washington, and wanted to serve low-income families with quality, individualized child care.
Sheri never imagined that this venture would involve working through a global pandemic.
Blue Heron Montessori, which serves kids ages 3-6 in Bellingham, began to experience the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic because some teachers had to return home to stay with their school-age kids amid all of the school shutdowns. As a result, Blue Heron’s team grew smaller.
“We ended up closing our toddler program, and we had to start all over with staffing,” Sheri said.
The right help at the right time
They had lost a lot of income from decreased enrollment, and pandemic-related expenses put a burden on the budget. But Sheri and her team kept the school afloat with hard work, resilience and grant assistance that came through at just the right time.
This funding was a federal pandemic relief grant managed by Opportunity Council’s Center for Retention and Expansion of Child Care (C-RECC). C-RECC used these ARPA dollars to supported child care providers and retain over 2,400 child care slots throughout Whatcom County, including capacity from Blue Heron Montessori.
After Sheri applied for and received funding, she went to work utilizing the grant funds in several ways. Teacher bonuses and support staff wages helped to rebuild and stabilize her team. She also used the grant dollars to make needed repairs to school building and grounds.
Moving forward with resilience
“The financial assistance we received has been instrumental in addressing the unique needs of our preschool, particularly those of children with high needs,” Sheri said. “The grant funds allowed us to pay for additional hours needed by staff members and substitutes/assistants to support these children.”
Several teachers also stayed at Blue Heron Montessori because of teacher bonuses that helped mitigate the effects of the rising cost of living.
“The grant really helped us with those practical things that keep the kids safe and healthy, and keep the teachers coming back,” Sheri said. “and having continuity with teachers is not only good for the school, it’s also important for the kids and their well-being.”
Moving forward, the Blue Heron Montessori team hopes to re-open the toddler program and expand even more. Sheri is looking forward to serving more families again.
“If we made it through COVID, I think we can make it through anything,” she said.
Support for the child care sector
C-RECC, a program of Opportunity Council, works to boost the economy and support children and families by strengthening all aspects of the child care sector across Northwest Washington.
To learn more about starting your own child care program and gain support and guidance along the way, visit our Become a Provider page!
To view current funding opportunities through the Center for Retention & Expansion of Child Care (C-RECC), visit our Funding page.
To learn about how to support your employees and their families through a family-friendly workplace, please reach out to us by email at .
