VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Syracuse day care makes the most of award grant
Cedric Derecho: For the first time in 23 years, Lydia’s Lullaby day care in Syracuse is getting an upgrade. Located in a low-income neighborhood, abandoned homes and overgrown playgrounds are an all too familiar eyesore. Jenni Botsford-Bozeat says it’s long overdue.
Jenni Botsford-Bozeat: We hadn’t had a working dishwasher in over a year. We had been boiling water to make sure that the dishes were sanitized.
Derecho: The non-profit day care center applied for this year’s Child Care Enhancement Grant. Giving their children the best standard of care possible is what Botsford-Bozeat values most.
Bozeat: The most rewarding part of my job is being here in an area where there’s not a lot of childcare, and just knowing that these kids come in happy every day to see us, and that we are able to give them great care.
Derecho: The much needed grant awards the center $10,000 to help with repairs, renovations and equipment upgrades. Ongoing renovations are already making a big impact. Parents like Caroline Daniels are grateful.
Caroline Daniels: I’ve loved it here ever since. They’ve been super great to my son and me, and I wouldn’t have chosen anywhere else.
Derecho: Lydia’s Lullaby day care now has a new washer, refrigerator, stove, and in the coming months a new playground. Botsford-Bozeat, a mother of seven herself, says the center’s improvements mean everything to her, her staff, and all the kids at Lydia’s she considers “one of her own.” Cedric Derecho, NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Lydia’s Lullaby day care in Syracuse received a much-needed upgrade last month. The non-profit day care center applied for and received this year’s Child Care Enhancement Grant. For the first time in 23 years, the center was equipped with new appliances like a washer, refrigerator and stove.
The grant, awarded by the state, funded the center with $10,000 to help with repairs, renovations and equipment upgrades. The director at Lydia’s, Jenni Botsford-Bozeat, says it’s long overdue.
“We hadn’t had a working dishwasher in over a year. We had been boiling water to make sure that the dishes were sanitized,” Botsford-Bozeat said.
Located in a low-income neighborhood, abandoned homes and overgrown playgrounds surround the center. In Syracuse, where the average annual income is $43,000 and 30% of the population lives below the poverty line, day care centers like Lydia’s are few and far between.
“The most rewarding part of my job is being here in an area where there’s not a lot of childcare, and just knowing that these kids come in happy every day to see us, and that we are able to give them great care,” Botsford-Bozeat said.
Ongoing renovations are already making a big impact. Parents of toddler-aged children at the center, like Caroline Daniels, are grateful for the changes taking place.
“I’ve loved it here ever since. They’ve been super great to my son and me, and I wouldn’t have chosen anywhere else,” Daniels said.
Giving the children at Lydia’s the best standard of care possible is what Botsford-Bozeat values most.
In the coming months, the center intends to build a new playground, shed, and to repair its leaking roof. Botsford-Bozeat, a mother of seven herself, said the center’s improvements mean everything to her, her staff, and all the kids at Lydia’s she considers “one of her own.”