THUNDER BAY - A local childcare centre suddely announced it is now closed, leaving many parents struggling to find childcare after being notified via letter the day after the closure.
“It is so utterly patronizing and infuriating,” said parent Dustin Kreps. “I can’t even express it any more than that.”
The W. J. Griffis Children’s Centre, operated by Community Living Thunder Bay, officially closed as of Aug. 10.
The centre has not been operating since March 14 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kreps said he had spoken with Community Living Thunder Bay in June to confirm his child still had a place at the centre. He did not receive any other communication until a letter from the executive director on Aug. 11, one day after the centre closed.
“What I found particularly patronizing about the letter is there was no real sense that they had considered the consequences of this,” Kreps said. “They made a comment that they are confident someone else will offer the program and we will find daycare somewhere. That is so deaf to the situation of childcare, not just in the city but across the province.”
Community Living Thunder Bay declined an interview to speak to the closure, but issued a statement, saying the decision to close the centre was based on province wide changes to early years programming and funding.
“Making decisions that impact local families and children is never easy,” said Lisa Foster, executive director of Community Living Thunder Bay, in a written statement.
“However, in light of ongoing sector transformations, the provision of non-specialized daycare services no longer fits the mandate of Community Living Thunder Bay. We are an organizations that supports persons with intellectual disabilities, and we must ensure that our work focuses on the people and communities we serve.”
Foster goes on to say that there are more suitable public and private sector organizations in the city that have the mandate and capacity to meet these needs.
The W. J. Griffis Childcare Centre is a non-profit Montessori pre-school and served children between the age of 18 months and six-years old. Montessori is an Italian child-centered education method that focuses on physical, social, emotional, and cognitive learning.
“Community Living Thunder Bay recognizes the need for Montessori programming in Thunder Bay,” Foster said. “We are willing to donate our Montessori supplies and resources to another local childcare centre or eligible service provider. We welcome interest from parties who can give the Montessori programming the focus and attention it deserves.”
The sudden closure has left many parents now struggling to find childcare, saying Community Living Thunder Bay failed to properly communicate with families and staff.
“What I find even more egregious was the staff wasn’t even informed until after we were,” Kreps said. “The staff found out they lost their jobs by distraught parents contacting them asking if this is a real thing.”
Kreps added he lost his job due to COVID-19 and was expecting to start a new job in September, but those plans will have to change.
“Now I will have to continue to be a full-time father,” he said. “I love spending time with my kids, but we were trying to get back to some sense of normalcy and childcare as a guarantee was the only certainty we had in life and that is now gone.”
“This whole situation just seems to half-cocked and poorly thought out. It’s a shock to us. It’s taken away any certainty families had.”
