By Casey Neill
The aptly named Heritage Preschool is celebrating 40 years in the community.
The Noble Park North kinder will hold an open night to mark the milestone, from 5pm to 6pm on Thursday 6 October.
Denise Royal has worked there since 2001.
“It was originally just a maternity position. I was going to be here for six months,” she said.
“The girl came back for six months and then she got pregnant again and she left. I’ve been here ever since.”
Heritage started out with only one or two groups.
“Then we’ve had a major renovation a few years back, and it became a double unit,” Ms Royal said.
“We increased from three four-year-old groups to three four-year-old groups and two three-year-old groups.”
There are almost 50 kids enrolled at any given time, and 11 staff members.
“I love the fact that we’re so multicultural here, and we’re so diverse,” Ms Royal said.
“The kids and the families are just great, they’re so different.
“Early on it was more Australian and Vietnamese mix.
“Now we just have children from all over the world. It’s just fantastic.”
She learns from the children and their families through cooking, handicraft and chats.
“We encourage the families to come into the centre and share a bit of their culture and family life and celebrations with us,” she said.
“We do have a multicultural day once a year – Harmony Day – but we tend to just encourage them all the time.”
Ms Royal said many children couldn’t speak English when they started.
“That provides a lot of challenges,” she said.
“We use gestures and signs and we have photos.
“We try to get the families to give us some key words that we can use.
“When you use it, the child’s face lights up. It’s a word that they’re familiar with.
“We sing lots of songs and we find that singing the songs and the repetitiveness they pick it up really fast.”
Essendon Football Club player James Gwilt is among Ms Royal’s most famous kinder kids.
“I have an album here with all the photos from right back to 1976 when we first opened – all the group photos. The kids love it,” she said.
“Throughout the years, we’ve had families where mum or dad have been here and their children have come along.
“I have cousins here. The first cousin was here when I first started and then over the years various cousins have come, and now that young man who I had in my first year, he now brings his cousin to kinder. He picks him up.”
She’s hoping many will return for the celebrations.
“We’re hoping to get a lot of past families, present families and prospective families to come along and just meet everyone,” she said.
“We just keep getting bigger and bigger.
“I think heritage will be here for a long time to stay.”
