Two local early childhood educators have been awarded an esteemed honour by the province.
The duo has been recognized for their hard work and dedication in the field of childcare, earning the 2024 Minister's Award of Excellence in Child Development.
Chasity Hauck and Jen Horne from Peak-A-Boo Childcare Association in Cochrane won in the team category for their commitment to educating over 20 children each day.
Hauck shared that being nominated was a surprise, but winning together was an incredible feeling.
"We feel privileged our parents recognized us and we kind of feel like it's the same thing that we recognize in each other. We didn't know to nominate each other for something like this but we recognize it in each other, so it worked out to be really special that we were nominated and we won."
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The pair says building their bond as a team hasn’t just benefited themselves, but also the children and families they serve.
"We love to work together, which makes it a great team, I think it shows with the families and the kids too because they love being here."
Both have worked in childcare for over 20 years, and they’ve been a team for the past year.
"We weren't even aware we were nominated so it was quite a wonderful surprise and really exciting to win."
The award was presented to them by the Minister of Education during a Zoom ceremony.
Peak-A-Boo Childcare Association serves 59 children, employs 14 people and is locally owned and operated.