5-5-2008 

Bloom Where You Are Planted!

As spring approaches, I've been cleaning out our flower beds at home and I came upon my faded garden plaque that reads, "Bloom Where You Are Planted." I realized how relevant those words are for us.

The mission of St Paul Mother's Day Out was planted at our church over 30 years ago. It has grown and flourished from a program that met one day a week with twenty children in attendance to a five day a week program that serves over one hundred and forty children weekly. We are so fortunate to have benefited from the foresight of Ruth Bush, Sandy Wagner, and Jan Wiggs to see a need to fill our empty classrooms during the week while providing quality childcare for our community.

The mission statement of St. Paul Church asks us to reach out in ever-widening circles to include all of God's people and we are striving to do that daily through our service to the families of our community. Sadly, another school year will be ending shortly. What growth we have seen! Looking back to the timid way our lunch box toting two year olds began school last fall to the self assured way they enter the building this week, it is quite evident how much our students have bloomed this year. Now we see our three year olds are able to hold their scissors correctly and they are mastering the skills of waiting their turn and sharing. They particularly enjoy participating in circle time and group games or musical activities.

Our four year olds are writing their names, recognizing the alphabet and numbers, and they are responsibly learning to be self-sufficient by taking care of themselves, their classroom, and the world around them. This spring we have volunteered to be Guardians of the Gardens. As designated by the Angels in the Garden, Mother's Day Out has adopted the small area near the doorway where students enter our building each day. It is in the small alcove to the left of the steps as you enter the Activity Center doors.

Mrs. Ann Lewis and Mrs. Carol Juenger's class of four year olds could be seen digging in the mud (what other kind of dirt has there been) while they carefully planted their flowers on Earth Day. As I helped to spread mulch, I watched as they left for the day, excitedly and with great pride they each stopped to show their Moms which plant had been planted by them. We hope you too can stop by and enjoy our garden.


Wherever you are on life's journey, remember to bloom.

Jeri Hausmann
Director MDO