After 39 of running Small World, Mrs. Faye LaBoone has decided that it is time to retire.
Her sister-in-law, Sammy Waltman, had convinced her to purchase the old Kiddy Coral, which was already a daycare, back in 1979. By January 2, 1980, she and her sister-in-law had officially opened Small World. After a couple of years, Sammy moved away leaving the daycare with Mrs. Faye.
Over the years, Mrs. Faye had brought about multiple changes to the facility. She added on to the original building twice and decided to develop a curriculum for all of the age groups.
“I’ve always had the same philosophy: we’re going to be here all day, so we might as well have some fun and learn something,” said Mrs. Faye.
As part of the curriculum, she has had age appropriate toys in each of the classes to help with child development. She has made sure that Small World stresses development and not just memorization and repetition. They’ve always used plenty of music and read multiple stories.
Mrs. Faye has truly enjoyed her time at Small World.
“I’ve enjoyed it. It’s been fun. It’s just a joy to watch the children grow, learn, and develop. I’ve been very fortunate that so many people have shared their children with me,” explained Mrs. Faye. “It’s been a rewarding experience. I can’t imagine anything more rewarding to do.”
Looking back on all her years with the daycare, she is thankful not only for the children and the parents, but she’s also grateful for all of her employees.
“I’ve been lucky to have some real good employees over the years,” stated Mrs. Faye.
Now that she’s retired, she has to learn what retired people do.
“I will have to learn how to live with Cliff [husband] now that we will both be home all day,” said Mrs. Faye. “I will have to think of some ground rules for him, such as I will not be cooking lunch every day. I’m going to have to get used to not having a structured day anymore.”
Although she will greatly miss the daycare and all of her babies, Mrs. Faye is not worried about the direction the daycare is going. Health care regulations would not allow her to simply transfer Small World to a new director, so she had to officially close Small World on September 30.
“I’m leaving it in excellent hands, so I don’t have to worry about my babies being taken care of,” announced Mrs. Faye.
She is loved by all and will definitely be missed at the daycare facility. Her legacy will now continue on in the new center, Small Hands Academy.
