An early childhood educator (ECE) in Cochrane has been recognized by the provincial government for her extensive work with young children. Claire Daoud, an ECE with the Play Days Family Day Home Agency (PDFDHA), was honoured Nov. 30, 2018 with the Minister’s Award of Excellence in Child Development. The award is distributed annually by Minister of Children Services Danielle Larivee, presented to childcare professionals in Alberta who make a positive difference in the lives of children and families. While 43 individual ECEs were nominated for the award, Daoud was one of just three recipients this year. Daoud has been working as an ECE for three decades, and said it was rewarding to receive the award. “After working for 30 years in the field…I think it’s nice to be recognized, and it’s quite validating to be able to recognize the work that women do,” she said. Daoud said she came to Cochrane a year and a half ago. Originally from Quebec, she previously ran and operated the Garderie Centre Educatif Mijanou – a pre-kindergarten centre in Laval, Que. She said she moved to Cochrane to be with her fiancé. “I just fell in love with Alberta, and realized I had the possibility of running a day home,” she said. “There’s so much I’ve learned that I wanted to implement. I think it was fitting for me to join Play Days agency, so I could pursue my career in a way that felt right.” While most of Daoud’s professional life has seen her working as an ECE, she said she initially started her career in the education sector. After working with children who had special needs, she realized she wanted to become an ECE. Thirty years later, she said she still feels the career shift was the right decision. “It’s a long time ago, but when you’re passionate about something, it doesn’t feel like it was a long time ago,” she said. “I was lucky enough to find my calling at a very young age, and [I had] a mentor that gave me the possibility of exploring my relationship with children.” Having received this award, Daoud said she is more motivated than ever to continue helping young children learn and grow during their critical early years. She added many of the kids she worked with during the early days of her career are now fully grown, and some even have young children and families of their own. “I’ve had some who connected with me through Facebook and who are parents today,” she said. “I have been reconnecting in different ways, so it’s quite rewarding to see where children end up. “When you see that they’ve evolved, it’s such a gift, to see the impact we’ve had in their lives.”
