What a challenging year this has been at Magen Avraham’s YULA (our after school center)!
When the first lockdown started in March it wasn’t clear how long it was going to last and how it was going to affect the school year. When we were able to open our doors in May many parents decided not to send their children back to the YULA and some didn’t even send them back to school because they were afraid and didn’t trust the school system. Some parents, who were unemployed or working from home, had to cancel their childrens’ participation.
The children had to be divided into small groups which was not a simple task since we had to hire more staff and were worried whether we would have enough space in our buildings. It was not easy keeping the small groups of children separated all the time. Let's see you try to keep kids in the same place for more than 10 minutes.
As we approached the new school year it was clear that it would also be different. It wasn’t easy for the kids to wear masks all the time and each group of children had its own schedule. Frustrating? Yes! Confusing? Of course! But we stayed dedicated to the parents who were paying us so that their children would be cared for no matter what!
And that is what is important and what we believe in. It is our first priority to provide the kids with an educational and enriched program that is also lots of fun!
Their parents know that they are in good hands and it is very satisfying to know that we are trusted by them. But we know that we have to continue to earn their trust and that is why it was and still is crucial that we study and know every health regulation and how to run our program accordingly.
I think that our hard work has proved itself since over 90% of the children returned after the third lockdown. Our Passover camp was full and even new kids joined.
This last year nearly ruined everything we have worked for over the years. It was sad to see our very successful afterschool program closed.
But we are back! We will keep on providing a service that includes teaching important Conservative Jewish values to the children whose parents put their trust in us. We hope to continue to do this for many years to come.