Co-op nursery hoping to re-open after school program

William S. Patterson parent council chair Vivian Desjarlais, Interlake Co-op Nursery director Cheryl Longley and William S. Patterson principal Glen Jede are happy with plans for a new before and after school program. 

By Austin Grabish, The Selkirk Record 

A before and after school program in Clandeboye that was slated to close its doors for good last week may re-open under new management in September. 

Interlake Co-op Nursery plans on taking over the childcare program at William S. Patterson School and is already taking registration forms from parents who want to enroll their kids in it. 

Director Cheryl Longley said the organization still has some red tape to cut through, but if all goes well, the program will be up and running by the first day of school in September.

The organization already has a nursery school on Highway 8 and had been considering taking over the before and after school program ever since the YMCA announced it was pulling the plug on the program. 

Longley said because preschoolers who go to the nursery school will eventually attend William S. Patterson it only makes sense for the group to take over the program. 

She said the group is trying to keep the YMCA’s program intact and parents should notice little difference this fall.  

“We’re trying not to make too many changes to it so you know hopefully it’ll just be business as usual come September,” Longley said. 

Under the current government subsidized program, as many as 15 students from kindergarten - Grade 6 can come for two hours before school and stay for three in the evening. 

Longley said in September as many as 20 kids could be allowed into the program.

The YMCA announced earlier this year it was closing the program indefinitely, because it was no longer financially viable for the organization to keep it running. 

The announcement came after the Y stopped allowing kindergarten students into the program, a move highly criticized by some parents.

William S. Patterson Parent Council chair Vivian Desjarlais said it was discouraging to see the only licensed childcare program in the area shut down. 

“It was removing a very important staple of our community,” Desjarlais said. 

Principal Glen Jede agreed.

“We were quite concerned as there were a number of kids that do use that program,” Jede said. 

Longley said the Lord Selkirk School Division has been very supportive of takeover plans and a lease has already been signed.

“We’re just so thankful that they’ve come along… because it is a valuable program that a lot of our families really rely upon,” Jede said. 

Longley said once Interlake Co-op Nursery hires an early childhood educator and gets through some red tape with the province, the program can resume.  

“There’s lots of paperwork that goes along with that,” she said. 

 -- First published in the Selkirk Record print edition July 2 2015 p.10