Phone: 604-435-0323 | Email: info@cnh.bc.ca

Tag: Early Years

  • Cindy Chisolm celebrates 20 years in child care at CNH

    Cindy Chisolm celebrates 20 years in child care at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years of service and dedication to the neighbourhood house, were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Cindy Chisolm for over 20 years of service!

    Cindy Chisolm

    In 2004, Cindy started as a childcare worker in CNH’s toddler program. Five years later, she transitioned to a role as school-age coordinator in our Graham Bruce and CNS programs.

    Today, she is a coordinator with the Renfrew School-Age Child Care program. Cindy is described as someone who “puts everything into her work.” This includes ensuring a quality program and the utmost creativity with annual art shows Cindy hosts with her team and program participants.

    Cindy says she has stayed at CNH for so long because it doesn’t feel like a traditional workplace At CNH, Cindy says it feels like a community and a family where people genuinely care about each other.

    While Cindy holds many favourite memories at CNH, one experience she will never forget is a trip to Reggio Emilia.

    “It was such a fantastic learning experience,” she says. “I know for myself and many others who went on this trip, it showed that CNH values the work that we do as [Early Childhood Educators] by providing us this opportunity.”

    As a result of starting in the toddler program, Cindy has had the honour of working with some children from their toddler years through Grade 7. They are now in university and still come to visit. “I love the connections made over the years,” Cindy says.

    A more recent memory would be watching a child with low self-esteem, who thought she wasn’t good at anything, beam with pride during the art show as she led the school principal around. And later with such joy as she showed her mother what she had done.

    Congratulations, Cindy!

    Learn more about career opportunities at CNH at cnh.bc.ca/careers.

  • Im Mei Kwok celebrates 20 years in child care at CNH

    Im Mei Kwok celebrates 20 years in child care at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years of service and dedication to the neighbourhood house, were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Im Mei Kwok for over 20 years of service!

    Im Mei Kwok

    Im Mei has worked with CNH for over 20 years. Currently with the Duke Street Early Learning and Care Centre team, she first started as a childcare worker on Nov. 3, 2003.

    Im Mei has a passion for teaching children many different concepts and skills; she introduces different activities and stories to them with excitement and joy. Described by her colleagues as scholarly, resourceful, thoughtful and positive, she is also described as “a gentle, loving teacher to the children.”

    Im Mei said that she has stayed with CNH because she has been part of a good team over the years. To the team, they say Im Mei is like family to them.

    Congratulations, Im Mei!

    Learn more about career opportunities at CNH at cnh.bc.ca/careers.

  • Celebrating over 25 years in child care

    Celebrating over 25 years in child care

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years of service and dedication to the neighbourhood house, were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Soudabeh “Soudi” Babaie, one of our childcare workers, for over 25 years of service!

    Soudi (left) and her colleague, Sabrina Bantog, at CNH’s Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024.

    Soudi started as a childcare worker at CNH on Oct. 11, 1998. Today, she continues to work in childcare at the Duke Street Early Learning and Care Centre where her years of experience complement her compassionate nature.

    Described as caring, considerate and understanding among her colleagues, Soudi is also known for her sweet, gentle and loving manner with the children in our programs. Soudi credits her 25+ years at CNH to the support of her colleagues and has built many deep relationships as a result. Soudi’s colleagues say she is equally supportive and like family to many of the childcare workers at CNH.

    Soudi loves running, reading, hiking, sewing and knitting, and plans to travel more.

    Congratulations, Soudi!

    Learn more about opportunities at CNH at cnh.bc.ca/careers.

  • Applications open for the 2024 Early Childhood Education Scholarship

    The Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) Board of Directors is proud to provide a scholarship of $750.00 in honour of a long-term staff Nina Vacca.

    Nina passed away in 2021. Nina arrived to Canada as a refugee and was a lifelong learner; she pursued her Early Childhood Education Certificate later in life.

    Nina worked at CNH as a manager of the LINC Childcare Program; she was also a childcare worker in the Families Branching Out Program and Family Place. She always showed a lot of love an care in the work she did with children.

    Her contributions and work did not stop with her caring for children at CNH: she volunteered in her community every year to organize events for the Chilean community.

    At CNH we want to celebrate Nina’s legacy by offering this scholarship to newcomer women and girls, including those who identify as trans or non-binary.

    How to apply

    1. Download and fill out the application at this link or get an application form from reception at CNH (5288 Joyce St)
    2. Email the form to info@cnh.bc.ca or hand it into reception by deadline

    Application Deadline

    The deadline for applications is Tuesday, August 6, 2024 at 5 pm.

  • Karen Wong’s celebrates 15 years in child care at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At each year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years of service to the neighbourhood house were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Karen Wong for 15 years of service. Here’s what Renuka Bhardwaj, CNH Preschool Coordinator, had to say about Karen:

    Currently working in administration support for CNH’s preschool and early learning care programs, Karen is a hardworking, reliable and passionate individual. She is especially great with children with special needs. I still remember she went back to school to get her special needs certification so she could support a particular child in our preschool.

    Karen is also an executive member of the Vancouver branch of Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC) and is always ready to help her coworkers.

    Karen loves the family-friendly environment of CNH, which made her stay at CNH for over 15 years. She initially moved to another neighbourhood house but decided to come back because she loves CNH.

    When I asked Karen about her favourite work-related memory, she said, “I love spending time with all the great colleagues every day. On graduation day, seeing children getting ready to move on to the next stage is a very special experience. I love our Pro-D outings.”

    Thank you, Karen!

    To learn about current career opportunities at CNH, visit www.cnh.bc.ca/about/careers.

  • Jyotsna Patel celebrates 15 years in child care at CNH

    Jyotsna Patel celebrates 15 years in child care at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At each year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years of service to the neighbourhood house were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Jyotsna Patel for 15 years of service. Here’s what Sabrina Bantog, Child Care HR Manager, had to say about Jyotsna:

    Jyotsna has been a childcare casual with the Department of Early Years at CNH since March 4, 2008, where I have had the pleasure of both working with and supervising her. As a casual, she works in multiple programs, sometimes with very little notice for a shift start time. Jyotsna is flexible and always wants to work as much as possible. There have been multiple occasions when she has worked in the same program for months at a time.

    Her colleagues describe her as being helpful and hard-working and say she is always friendly with the children and staff. She is very generous, kind and thoughtful. When asked why Jyotsna has stayed with CNH for so long, she said it’s because she likes CNH, she likes the children and she simply just wants to stay with us. Jyotsna says that when she started working with small children at CNH she just had to continue.

    We thank and appreciate Jyotsna for her dedication and commitment and want her to know that she is so valued. Congratulations, Jytonsa!

    To learn about current career opportunities at CNH, visit www.cnh.bc.ca/about/careers.

    ***

    Pictured: Sabrina Bantog (left) and Jyotsna Patel at our 2023 AGM.

  • Amie Fan celebrates 20 years as an Early Childhood Educator at CNH

    Amie Fan celebrates 20 years as an Early Childhood Educator at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years of service to the neighbourhood house were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Amie Fan for 20 years of service. Here’s what Sabrina Bantog, Manager of Child Care Human Resources at CNH, had to say about Amie:

    Amie started work with us at CNH in August of 2003. I had the pleasure of working with her for 10 years before I moved on to other roles within Collingwood. It is an honour to recognize Amie for 20 years of dedication to CNH. Amie currently is an Early Childhood Educator (ECE) working at the Collingwood Early Learning & Care Centre.

    Amie’s coordinator, Kalvinder, says that Amie is a dedicated, hard-working individual with a great sense of humour. Amie supports children’s learning by having a love for playdough. Every week, she makes playdough that children can roll, mould and construct with. When children combine playdough from two different hues, you can see the joy on their faces. Amie also shares her love for music and dance with the children by engaging them in “dance time” by playing songs. Kalvinder thinks Amie stayed with CNH for the majority of her ECE career because she enjoys the everyday interaction with children and families and loves the welcoming environment of the daycare.

    Kalvinder’s work-related memory involving Amie was when she participated in the learning with the community pedologist about the Early Learning Framework. Amie took the initiative to learn how to use one-note to enhance the documentation experience for both staff and children. She would take pictures of children exploring different mediums of art, while recording their thoughts, conversations and ideas and then download it to one-note for the team to look at.

    Amie’s colleague describes her as always being reliable and having a memory like no other. She remembers children’s names and families from many years ago. Amie always has a smile on her face and a calm demeanour no matter what is going on.

    When asked Amie about her highlights of working at CNH, she mentioned watching children grow and develop and the support she receives from CNH in particular during the pandemic which was a difficult time for everyone. Amie really appreciates the support the CNH provided her during this time.

    When Amie was asked why she stayed with CNH, she said: “I love the people that I work with and interact with each and every day. CNH is a home away from home for me!”

    Congratulations, Amie, and thank you for your continued service at CNH.

    For information about careers at CNH, visit www.cnh.bc.ca/about/careers.

  • Walda Gorn: 25 years in child care at CNH

    Walda Gorn: 25 years in child care at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years of service to the neighbourhood house were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Walda Gorn for 25 years of service. Here’s what Diana Taykandy, Operations Child Care Program Manager, had to say about Walda:

    Walda began her journey at CNH just over 25 years ago. In 1997, she started as a practicum student in our preschool program. Once she completed her Early Childhood Educator (ECE) coursework, she returned to CNH to complete 500 hours of volunteer work to obtain her license to practice in childcare. At this time, Walda volunteered in both of our preschool and infant/toddler programs.

    Eventually, a part-time position became available in our infant/toddler centre and Walda applied. With her experience at CNH, it was no surprise she was hired for the role. Shortly after, a full-time position opened with our childcare team and for years, Walda worked happily in the infant/toddler program, learning, growing and always caring for our under-threes. Over time, it became clear that Walda was continuously willing to learn, discover and improve her programs. She was also keen on honing her own skills and knowledge in the industry.

    In 2013, Walda became a program coordinator at CNH and that’s where we still find her. We are so fortunate that Walda did all her early learnings with us. Today, Walda works with eight educators in the infant/toddler program, most of whom have been working together for many years. Needless to say, a team working together as long as they have, share a special connection.

    When asked what made Walda stay with us for so many years, her initial response was that she loved the team she worked with. Ultimately, Walda says she felt (and still feels) that CNH is her place. Walda also lives nearby and has been a part of the local community for a long time. In fact, Walda’s family has spent time helping in both our infant/toddler program and CNH as well. Walda’s husband, for example, has supported our childcare centres by doing odd jobs, such as painting, pressure washing and building furniture. Additionally, he has always been a huge support to Walda, who in turn is always looking out for the very best in her programs.

    Walda is dedicated and self-motivated, which is only part of what makes her the special person she is today. It has been a pleasure working with her all these years and we look forward to many more. (We are not kidding, Walda says her future plans are to continue working at CNH.)

    Thank you, Walda, for all that you do every day. We are so fortunate to have had your entire career take place at CNH!

    To learn about current career opportunities at CNH, visit www.cnh.bc.ca/about/careers.

  • Renuka Bhardwaj celebrates 25 years in Early Childhood Education at CNH

    Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) proudly recognizes its long-serving staff members. At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), CNH staff and contractors who have reached the milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years of service to the neighbourhood house were thanked by the Board of Directors.

    This year, we recognize and celebrate Renuka Bhardwaj for 25 years of service. Here’s what Sabrina Bantog, Manager of Child Care Human Resources, had to say about Renuka:

    I have known Renuka since she started with us at CNH 25 years ago. When I first met her, it was both as colleagues and in the parent/caregiver capacity as her daughter was in my program as an infant. Renuka’s first role with CNH was as an Early Childhood Educator (ECE) practicum student. Shortly after, she became a preschool staff and then took over as the supervisor of the program. She has been with the program as a coordinator ever since.

    If I had to pick one memory of Renuka, it would be of the time we spent together with Leadership Initiative, a course offered by Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC), where we spent many hours together learning about and working on advocacy for childcare. We created a project called “Children Are Everybody’s Business” and when the program came to an end, Renuka’s journey of advocacy was far from over. She continued on to become a board member with the Vancouver branch of ECEBC and recently became a shop steward.

    Outside of her typical work, Renuka takes opportunities when she can in order to support CNH. During the pandemic, Renuka was a tremendous support for community food distribution. Emily Rees, Director of Community Development, says Renuka stepped up without hesitation and was such a pleasure to work with. Renuka worked behind the scenes organizing food orders, registering clients, and working directly with community members to maintain safety, answer questions and receive food. Renuka was able to pivot her skillset and apply her knowledge from childcare to a new setting. She was also open to learning new skills. We were so grateful for Renuka’s contributions and are proud to share that Renuka continues to support other initiatives at CNH, such as our annual volunteer recognition event.

    Renuka’s colleagues say they enjoy working with her because she is open to new ideas, passionate about her work and fun to work with. Renuka’s favourite work-related memories are our Christmas parties in the multi-purpose room (a long time ago) and our ECE trip to Reggio Emilia in Italy.

    Renuka says, “CNH is not only my workplace, it was also my childcare place. I have made some good friends, I know I can go to for advice and help.” Additionally, Renuka says she has stayed with CNH for so long because CNH is a family-friendly workplace and it became the village that helped raise her child.

    When asked about her future plans and goals, Renuka says, “Let’s see what the future holds for me.”

    Renuka would like to acknowledge her daughter, Nikita, who now works at CNH with the Department of Operations.

    Thank you, Renuka, and congratulations on this milestone!

    To learn about current career opportunities at CNH, visit www.cnh.bc.ca/about/careers.

  • Applications open for the 2023 Early Childhood Education Scholarship

    The Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) Board of Directors is proud to provide a scholarship of $750.00 in honour of a long-term staff Nina Vacca.

    Nina passed away in 2021. Nina arrived to Canada as a refugee and was a lifelong learner; she pursued her Early Childhood Education Certificate later in life.

    Nina worked at CNH as a manager of the LINC Childcare Program; she was also a childcare worker in the Families Branching Out Program and Family Place. She always showed a lot of love and care in the work she did with children. 

    Her contributions and work did not stop with her caring for children at CNH: she volunteered in her community every year to organize events for the Chilean community. 

    At CNH we want to celebrate Nina’s legacy by offering this scholarship to refugee and immigrant women. 

    How to apply

    1. Download and fill out the application at https://bit.ly/nina-vacca-scholarship-2023 or get an application form from reception at CNH (5288 Joyce St)
    2. Email the form to info@cnh.bc.ca or hand it into reception by deadline

    Application Deadline

    The deadline for applications is Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023 at 5 pm.