Our Director's Story
I entered this field unexpectedly 34 years ago. I was having trouble getting care for my three children and also getting them to after-school activities. I was not enjoying my job downtown, so one day I just decided to quit work. At the time, I had no idea what I was going to do and my husband probably panicked hearing the news. I had to find a job, so I decided on a job that would allow me to be at home with my children. Subsequently, I began caring for children in my home.
My in-home daycare started with two children and gradually I built up my numbers and soon I was very high in demand. Soon I realized that each day I worked in my new profession, the more I loved it. I did in-home day care for 20 years and never regretted a day of it. But as the years continued, I could see things with in daycare prospective that I could not provide. I had various ages and could not possibly meet all of their developmental goals at the same time.
So, I prayed about it and shortly after the Lord placed it onto my heart to start building my own daycare center. At first I couldn’t see any possible way that this could work out, so for awhile it became just a dream of mine. At the time, we had two children of our own in college and I thought that there was no way that we could ever get the amount of money together to build a center.
After five years of dreaming, my husband and I seriously began to plan our own daycare center. The two of us began our business plan- he with his computer knowledge and business savvy and me with my education degree. Together we worked for months on end establishing exactly what we wanted in our business and in our daycare. At last, my dream had come to fruition and ground was broken for the building, I was able open the doors to my own daycare in June 1998.
Previously, I hadn’t put much thought into what my day to day life would be like as the owner and director of a child development center. I thought broadly, but not necessarily specifically. I moved from working with children one on one to then working as an administrator of a large daycare center with 220 children enrolled. I am also the supervisor and administrator to 50 employees and am responsible for their training. My staff is nearly entirely degreed and we have a very low staff turnover ratio.
I have been the owner and director of Heartland Hall for 14 years and I still love what I do, even 34 years later. I am blessed to have stumbled upon a profession that is so fulfilling and that I truly love. I am grateful every day for the opportunity that the Lord has provided to me.
Sally Lyday, Director Heartland Hall Child Development Center
