Tami Albanese and Laura Rubin have each worked at the Mt. Kisco Child Care Center for nearly two decades. There, they have taught thousands of children during their most impressionable years.
They are learning so much between birth and five years old. Its the basis for your entire life, Albanese said of the toddlers she works with.
A conversation with the two women is peppered with their fond memories from over the years. For one, Albanese can recall a student of hers who was learning English as a second language. When she began the class, she could only say a few words, but soon the little girl learned to clap her hands whenever she successfully completed a lesson.
Youre able to see you have taught them something," she said.
Rubin, who teaches mostly pre-school aged children, has similar memories of her years on the job. For her, some of the greatest joys of the Mt. Kisco Child Care Center are the relationships shes built with the toddlers she has helped grow into teenagers.
There are a lot of kids we have from when they are three months old until they go to middle school, said Rubin, a Somers resident.
The difference they have made is palpable in the children who later come back to visit or volunteer at the Center. Rubin said she often gets recognized in the grocery store by parents and friends of the organization.
People have stopped me and know who I am even if I didnt teach their kids, she added.
Rubin is also grateful the Mt. Kisco Child Care Center is the kind of place she can bring her own children. She knows they will be well cared for.
I know the teachers really well and I know they are in capable hands, she said. It made it easier for me to bring them to work with me."