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Dawson Daycare to expand by Dan Davidson
The Dawson Daycare is taking advantage of a Community Development Fund Grant to expand its premises. The Tier 2 funding in the amount of $67,696.00 will enable Dawson's oldest daycare The facility has been operating for many years out of Haldenby House, which is actually owned by the parish of St. Paul's Anglican Church. "We have a ten year lease with them, renewed after a twenty year lease, so we are not going anywhere. We have a great arrangement with them. We have a beautiful yard to go with it. We pay the taxes and maintenance on the building." It is an old building in which the Dawson Childcare Association has been allowed, under a "grandfather clause", to operate a daycare for 20 children in a space which has always been a bit too small. According to director Vera Holmes the expansion will bring the building up to code and allow for a more efficient organization of the available space. "It will bring us up to childcare standards for today and the proper square footage for 20 to 24 children. "We are going for quality. We will not be increasing our enrollment beyond 20, but our environment will be much nicer." The expansion will be one room on the west side of the building, which will take up the side yard by Church Street and be 470 square feet. The renovations will them make one large donut style space out of the ground floor of the building, with all the washrooms and utilities in the center. They outer room will be set up in age appropriate areas, but the daycare teachers will be able to communicate with each other easily, with no walls in the way. The daycare will have a laundry for the first time. The washroom will be redesigned for children and the staff will finally get their own washroom. "This is a big luxury for us." There will also be a diaper changing area and a larger kitchen. The renovation committee was formed last spring and got a lot of support in the way of letters from community members and others involved in child care. The association is feeling pretty good about the territorial government right now. "From a childcare point of view, and being in this field," Holmes said, "the government has been really great to work with. As far as their commitment to quality child care, I really do believe that they have made a great effort. "At the Dawson Childcare Association we have seen many improvements and many benefits. Child care is moving forward in our community." Holmes expects to be able to accomplish all this without having to shut down at all. The building will begin in two stages in June and August, and during much of that time the daycare will be outside at Crocus Bluff Park. "In the summertime we are barely indoors at all. We are so busy then. We have field trips. We are in the pool and at the park. We are not indoors for very much at all." After five years at the daycare, Holmes is glad to see these improvements coming. "Our parents all enjoy the daycare," she said, "but one of the biggest concerns I've had from parents is that it's old. "Yukoners all know that old buildings are hard to keep clean, so I'm just looking forward to having a quality environment for the children." There will also be room to display student work and show off a bit of what all the daycare staff have been learning in their early childhood development courses. "It's going to be great to have the space and the resources to put that into play." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WARREN on Consignment by Palma Berger The Humane Society is just for the caring and disbursement of four legged furry animals, as in dogs, cats, rabbits. Right? Not so. Just ask Warren, he would tell you. That is if he could talk. Warren was brought up by car, from down south somewhere, by a summer person who wanted a unique pet. But the person went south again, and left Warren in the care of his room-mate. The room-mate had no idea really on | |||||||||||
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Warren the monitor lizard is hanging out at Andy's Consignment and Variety Store. Photo by Kirstan Atkins. | |||||||||||
how to care for this unique creature. It sat in a cardboard box for quite a time, until the room-mate called the Humane Society. They collected him. They were appalled at the skin and bones that were poking forth on this by now lethargic, tired and underfed creature. The room-mate had no idea what he fed on. He kept him in a cardboard box. He did understand that he needed heat, so he put an electric light bulb into the box. But Warren, being a monitor lizard, whose need for warmth was greater than that of a northern resident, got too close to the light bulb, and badly burned his back. The Humane Society nursed him along for a month, and then Andy of ëAndy's Consignment and Variety Store' took him in. Andy and Kirsten took over the caring for Warren. They researched his homeland and his food needs. At first he was spoon fed soft dog food from a can with vitamins mixed in. Then he graduated to crickets, and now to full grown mice. Warren's homeland is Egypt, where his kind live along the Nile River, and feed on crocodile eggs. But here he has to accept whatever can be provided. They have bathed him in chamomile tea, and stroked aloe vera on his burn. The burn is finally healing. Andy has built a cage for him with a glass front, Heat lamps and infra red lamps keep the temperature at 85o, and he gets the full spectrum of light.. He has a pool , and rocks to climb on. They have found he needs a strict routine. This means that his early life of abandonment and neglect must have been particularly stressful for him. The sand in his cage is very fine and laced with vitamins so that if he does gobble some up when feeding it will help him. For extra exercise, Andy walks him at night in the back of the store. He has improved unbelievably. There is no sign of skin and bones of yore. He is now 23 inches long. Being a lizard this means that he has to get rid of his old skin. So the trails of skin peeling from him, are quite natural. His future? Andy and Kirsten cannot take care of him indefinitely. He does not stay small and manageable. He will grow to an adult size of six feet. They are hoping to give him to a reptile farm or a zoo where he can be scientifically looked after, and more food is available. He may need up to 4 rabbits a day. There is no room at Andy's Inn for storing food of this kind let alone a six foot monitor lizard. | |||||||||||
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