When I lost my mother in 2016, I lost a lot. I lost my teacher, mentor, spiritual guide, conscious, biggest supporter and…best babysitter. She was my go-to babysitter for her grandson, Zion. She was thrilled to babysit her grandson. Five months after holding her first grandson, she died suddenly and unexpectedly. I had a monumental child care void to fill. In walked, Danielle and Ana.
A friend of Danielle referred her to us shortly after my mom’s death. She was sixteen when she started. The first time she babysat, she locked Zion and herself out of the house. I was half way to a concert when she called to inform me. Not the best very impression, but she clearly cared about doing a good job. She stuck around for her senior year, first three years of college, different majors and different part-time jobs. This spring when I needed her most, she came through big time. Due to COVID, Zion was home with me, and I needed help during the day balancing our two schedules. She worked two or three days a week from March through the end of the school year in June. She was an absolute godsend keeping our household together. Now, she is off to finish her college studies in Colorado as Zion begins the school year remotely. God, please send me another Danielle…
Soon after Danielle joined our family, we connected with Ana on care.com. Ana was the perfect person at the perfect time. Ana is an experienced nanny so spending three hours on a Sunday afternoon with a five-year old boy was not going to phase her. For those three hours, she ran the household liked she lived here. She was my go-to babysitter for the past four years. Toastmaster meetings, date nights, concerts, Michigan football games, picking Zion up from soccer lessons and mostly Sunday afternoons when I needed a break, she was always there. When the Board of Education approved my application to become the Chief Financial and Operating Officer for Southfield Public Schools, she was the first person I told because she was, naturally, babysitting. Now, she is getting married in September and pursing her CPA.
Ana left us with a thought about how life is about change. Yes, it is. Sometimes, change hurts. Nevertheless, we will survive.
To Danielle and Ana, thank you for becoming members of our extended family and all the best life has to offer.