He who walks with wise men becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. –Proverbs 13:20
Denise Buthion is the person who taught me the most efficient way of running a childcare center. She came into my life because she was a parent of a child in the very first center I ever worked. I was a teacher and a mother of two children. She had a son who was three years old. She was a very knowledgeable person, and she and I got a long well, we developed a special friendship.
I was placed at a different facility within the same corporation after her son left my room, and we didn’t really keep in touch. I worked hard at the other center, and was soon promoted back to the first center, where I became the Assistant Director. Denise had just been hired as the director, and together she and I would run this facility.
Denise guided people; she could talk to them and explain things to them about their jobs, and how to meet expectations in a way I had never been exposed to before, she was so very kind, and respected people’s feelings. Even when there was disciplinary action taken, she did it in a way that the staff understood and looked up to her as a mentor, as I did for direction and guidance. She was well organized, and every task that we did in the center had a purpose and a specific outcome. She allowed me to have autonomy, but was watching from a distance to guide and teach me how to accomplish even the simplest task. Denise and I worked as a team for a little over a year, before I was promoted to a director. She gave me the wisdom to move up and be able to run my own center.
I made lots of mistakes that first year on my own. I thought I knew it all! Even when I was stressed out and thought I was going to snap, she was there for me every step of the way. She would talk me through how to word problems to parents, and how to speak so teachers would listen and respect me the way they did her. There were and still are lots of life lessons to learn.
I know, even today when I am scratching my head, looking for answers, I can always call Denise. She will always share her precious time with me, and make sure that I am on the right track. We have been through good times and bad times, and I was able to help her as well when she needed it a couple of years ago. It felt so good to be able to give back to her what she had shared with me for over thirty years.
Gabrielle Moon, Executive Director St. Luke’s Children’s Center
