This year, Winkler Daycare is celebrating half a century since its establishment.
In that time, countless children from the Pembina Valley have been entrusted to its care, where they have played, learned, and grown into the individuals that make up a thriving community.
Jeremy Hesom is one individual who went to the day care as a child. For him, the present has been a return to beginnings — he now works at Winkler Day Care approximately 15 years after attending it.
'It was a blast’
For Hesom, memories from the centre in Winkler are fond.
Something he holds onto is the social aspect of attending Winkler Day Care. He made a friend at the establishment that he still spends time with today, over a decade later.
“It was a blast,” he said. “I remember quite a bit. Obviously, it's a really nice space, so I remember playing in the backyard a lot.”
Hesom also said that, as a quiet child who enjoyed taking sights in, he recalls having a special interest in the green space of the centre’s yard and gazing at the trees that surround it.
Tadpole to frog
What Hesom labels as his most treasured memory from days gone by can also be representative of his cycle of growth with Winkler Day Care.
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He said that Ang Nickel (a veteran who still works at the centre today as its director) had a tank full of tadpoles that he enjoyed watching mature into frogs over time.
“That was probably my favourite thing there,” he said.
Winkler Day Care as an adult
Through the years, Winkler Day Care Centre has received updates, new equipment, and fresh faces, but it still remains a place that creates positive experiences for children.
Now, Hesom is a part of that process.
He said he gravitated to the job because he enjoys working with children and had previously done similar work with his church.
For Hesom, the best part of the career is “building relationships” with the children and enjoying their high energy.
He also enjoys meeting (and looking at the trees that surround the centre’s yard with) children who remind him of himself when he was day care age.
With files from Ty Hildebrand