By Jenny Gamito - Florida Catholic

MIAMI | Centro Mater turned 46 this year. What began with one religious and a few children in a Little Havana neighborhood now consists of five centers serving 1,200 children from low-income families in Miami, Hialeah and Hialeah Gardens.

That first center was founded by Sister Margarita Miranda in 1968. A member of the Religious of the Sacred Heart, she saw the need of newly-arrived Cuban exiles who often worked two jobs to make ends meet.

“Sister Margarita felt bad that the children did not have someone to take care of them while their parents worked and had the vision and drive to create Centro Mater,” said Madelyn Llanes, program administrator at Centro Mater Little Havana and an employee of the Hialeah and Little Havana centers for 17 years.

“She worked alongside volunteers and would ask local restaurants such as Versailles and La Carreta for food to be able to feed the kids at lunch time,” Llanes added.

Sister Miranda decided to name the place Centro Mater after the Latin phrase “mater admirabilis” which means “mother most admirable.

The first location was right at Jose Marti Park, which is adjacent to the current location of the original campus, now called Centro Mater East, at 418 S.W. Fourth Avenue in Miami. Centro Mater Child Care Services also includes Centro Mater East II in Miami, Centro Mater West and Centro Mater West II in Hialeah Gardens, and Centro Mater Walker Park in Hialeah.

Since 2007, Centro Mater has operated under the umbrella of the archdiocese’s Catholic Health Services. Its five locations provide daycare for infants and pre-schoolers, afterschool care for children between the ages of 5 and 12, and summer programs for school-age children. In the afterschool program, children in kindergarten through fifth grade do their homework and attend physical education, art and music classes while waiting to be picked up by their parents.

Currently, each Centro Mater location serves around 520 children. “There are as many children in our waitlist as there are currently enrolled,” said Llanes.

Underprivileged families receive free childcare and other services while other families pay a minimal fee based on their household income. The centers are open Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and they serve families regardless of their immigration status.

“The most important service we provide is that these children are not deprived from the things other middle class families enjoy. I see the charity in action and the positive impact it has on the families. The parents are grateful and the children are happy,” said Llanes.

Centro Mater has been recognized several times with significant honors, including the Point of Light Award bestowed by the White House. A U.S. flag flown in Washington D.C. was presented to the center by Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen in recognition of Centro Mater’s work throughout the years. One or more of its centers also have received accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the National After-School Association, the Gold Seal from the Florida Association for Child Care Management, and the Five Star rating from Quality Counts.

Centro Mater’s staff are currently in the process of implementing a program to teach children in both English and Spanish so they can attain passing scores in the elementary school entrance exams. The center’s executive director, Abilio Rodriguez, is working with the United Way to find the best way to implement the program.

“Our motto is to promote language and reading skills despite the barriers of family dynamics,” said Llanes.

Odelay Bermudez has worked for Centro Mater for 13 years, first as a substitute teacher and now with infants and newborns. “The best thing about our center is the warmth and love the children receive here and the fact that they have a routine where they eat warm meals at specific times,” said Bermudez. “Some children have a lot of siblings at home and it is hard for their parents to achieve a specific routine.”

The center is also unique in that it helps families understand legal issues and trains them on ways to ensure the health and safety of their children. Every year, Centro Mater hosts a health fair where about 30 vendors teach families about immunizations, drug interactions and child abuse prevention.

“We try to have a great relationship with the parents,” said Clara Gesni, who takes care of toddlers at the original campus in Little Havana. “It is important for them to know what we plan to achieve and how their children learn on a day by day basis. We stress fine and gross motor skills and we try to teach them to socialize by playing circle time and show and tell. Every month the parents receive a newsletter letting them know what we are doing and how they can further help their children at home.”

The neighboring communities respect and support the center’s work.

"We have so many activities all year long that are supported by high schools, lawyer associations and other organizations such as the United Way, the Cuban American Association and the Kiwanis of Little Havana,” said Llanes. “We celebrate Easter with the help of high schools that bring an Easter bunny, hide eggs and create games for the children to play. In Halloween, we partner with a Brickell law firm which hands out candy to the children. We are truly blessed.”

“The most rewarding part of this job for me is that now I get to teach the children of the children I cared for 27 years ago,” said Gesni. “A while back I saw a little girl that I recognized right away because she looked exactly like her mother, who happened to be in my class when she was a little girl. They were identical.”