Full Circle Life by Eugenia Simmons, CDA Coach Facilitator
Eugenia Simmons will never forget the day I was off to a new adventure of attending a school for the first time. I was standing at the designated bus stop at the entrance of the Rose Hill Community, just off New Castle Avenue-Route 9, with two of my cousins, other neighborhood children my age, and several grown-up adults supervising us. We all had a bookbag strapped on our backs, while some of the grown-ups wore slippers as we waited for the big yellow bus to arrive. Our parents had informed us that we would attend a school called “Head Start.” At the time, I didn’t know what to expect since I was so used to attending my grandmother’s daycare program at her house.
During her tenure in the early 1970s, my grandmother and a few other ladies in the neighborhood employed at Head Start were instrumental in recruiting any child between the ages of 3 and 5. After my grandmother resigned from the Rosehill Community Center as a Head Start teacher, she established her home daycare center. Many working mothers relied on and trusted my grandmother to care for their children because she had raised seven of her own.
I remember my grandmother explaining to my mother that a new early education program for children would provide them with nutritious free meals and help them find families’ needed resources, e.g., electric bills, Section 8 housing, food box pick-up locations, etc. Although I was sad to leave my grandmother’s house, I was happy my cousins Heather and Shawn and others from my neighborhood would join me in the program.
Soon, the big yellow school bus pulled up. I recall waving goodbye to the adults standing nearby and then quickly arriving at Rosehill Community Center. And boy, I had a fun time from day one. I’ll never forget my teacher, Mrs. Sodonia Parker. She was tall, pretty, and nice and always gave us the best hugs upon arriving and leaving. We played, ate, sang songs, and learned our ABCs and 123’s. Being able to attend the Head Start program was vital in my life. My mother later told me that she was amazed about how much I was learning and how well I was adjusting to coming out of my shy shell.
Fast forward many years, and the Head Start program became known as “New Castle County Head Start” (NCCHS). I have gone full circle, from enrolling at age four to working here today. I started as a teacher and center at the Claymont center, then transitioned to a center coordinator role at Rosehill Center. Later, I moved to the administrative office as an administrative assistant, and currently, I am a CDA coach facilitator, mentoring teacher assistants to earn an early childhood credential.
I’m still gratefully employed at NCCHS and have truly enjoyed my ten years! I wouldn’t trade any knowledge, skills, friends, and co-workers for anything in the world; we are like family! I am amazed at our fantastic NCCHS staff. So many of us are dedicated, humble, and caring. And when I say that I love working for this agency, I genuinely mean that I love working for this agency!
