Children at a Columbus childcare program received some special visitors as part of an effort to bring male role models into their lives.
Tuesday’s Men in the Life of Kids event, for children enrolled in the Early Head Start and Head Start programs at Human Services, Inc., gave children an opportunity to interact with different men in the community, said Amanda Raisor, site supervisor at the Columbus-based organization.
The two childcare programs, which help prepare children for kindergarten, serve low-income families in the area, Raisor said.
The idea for the Men in the Life of Kids stemmed from a program that was offered at a Head Start location in Michigan, she said.
Locally, many of the Head Start students don’t have fathers in their lives, said Crystal LaRue, a family advocate for the Early Head Start program.
“I want them to have fun, and the dads and the community to have fun,” LaRue said. “Some of (the children) have women raising them, and you can tell the difference in the classroom. A lot of them calm down when the men are there.”
But things were anything but calm when a group of children ages 3 to 5 climbed on LaRue’s husband, Steve, a Columbus Township fireman, one of a handful of volunteers from the department.
The children demonstrated rambunctious glee while climbing on LaRue after spending time at a table doing a quieter classroom activity.
For more on this story, see Thursday’s Republic.
