The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
CARING FOR KIDS
Children spend their time playing video games, after finishing their homework, at Rita’s Christian Academy, March 7. Rita Garcia, 62, is celebrating her 18th anniversary as founder and president of the academy 4940 Oberlin Ave. in Lorain.
Rita Garcia has two sons, five grandchildren and hundreds more children who have come to her for care.
Garcia, 62, is celebrating her 18th anniversary as founder and president of Rita’s Christian Academy, 4940 Oberlin Ave. in Lorain.
By her own admission, she also is driver, chef and chief bottle washer.
“It’s my calling,” Garcia said. “It’s rewarding, fulfilling. I’m not in front of a computer all day. It’s interaction. I don’t get tired of it.”
Garcia was born and raised in Lorain. An Admiral King High School alumna, she studied early childhood education at Lorain County Community College, then worked in childcare for Head Start and the Y.
In childcare, Garcia said she wanted to do more in her job. She started the academy in Amherst, then moved it to Lorain in 2004.
In her own continuing education, Garcia was part of the inaugural class of the Lorain Police Department Citizens Academy.
Rita’s Christian Academy is open five days a week. The daycare center opens at 5:30 a.m. to accommodate parents who begin work at 6 a.m.
The center closes at 6 p.m., so late afternoons have the hustle and bustle of parents picking up their children to head home.
In between, Garcia and a half dozen staff work staggered shifts taking children to school, picking them up, keeping them fed and learning.
“My staff’s exemplary,” Garcia said. “It’s a team. Can’t do it alone. It’s a team, no doubt about it.”
The childcare center has 2,700 square feet over two floors. Garcia is licensed to care for up to 65 children starting at age 6 weeks old, up to age 13 or older if parents want the children to be supervised during the day.
On a visit in March, there were 42 children, all older than one year, 20 of which were school age.
The youngest children stay upstairs, which is at ground level. That avoids falls on the steps and makes it easier to get out in an emergency.
School-age children head downstairs, where there are tables, games and a media room. Xbox is permitted only after homework is done.
“There’s bathrooms everywhere,” important for children to keep clean, Garcia said.
“We’re always trying to improve and clean,” she said.
But because children like to get into things, “it’s just a nonstop battle.”
On a recent visit, Karelin Medina-DelValle kept watchful eyes over the toddlers, while Jonathan Wharton assisted with the school-age children.
“You have to have good staff, obviously,” Garcia said. “If it wasn’t for my staff, I couldn’t function on a day-to-day basis.”
Staff members must have a high school diploma and pass a background check.
Over time, the state of Ohio Department of Job and Family Services is making requirements more stringent, Garcia said. The agency also makes two unannounced inspections a year and will do more if there are complaints.
The daycare offers breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack. Food is delivered daily by Culinary Management of South Lorain.
Enrollment goes up when schools close during holiday breaks and summer vacation. Garcia has had up to 15 staffers to watch the children there.
“We’re open 12 months out of the year,” she said. “It’s quite exhausting, I’ll tell you. Kids nowadays are pretty demanding.”
Some of the center staff are bilingual as Garcia serves the Spanish community.
The academy offers field trips and toddlers learn from the Houghton-Mifflin curriculum for that age, Garcia said.
“They’re an amazing daycare,” said Jennifer Pauley, a Lorain mother of five. Her oldest, now 8, has been attending since age 1, and all five of the siblings spend time there.
Garcia said she likes to keep business in Lorain, when possible.
Pullin CPA & Associates Inc. handles the bookkeeping, and Garcia noted she watched the children of accountant Michelle Pullin.
The ADAS of Lorain County is next door. Garcia said her roster of children has included the son of ADAS Executive Director Elaine Georgas.
For now, Garcia has no plans for the business to slow down.
“I’m doing something that I like to do,” she said. “Why would I retire? As long as it’s working.”
“It’s my calling. It’s rewarding, fulfilling. I’m not in front of a computer all day. It’s interaction. I don’t get tired of it.”
— Rita Garcia, founder and president of Rita’s Christian Academy