For Jan Wetzel, her passion for caregiving spans over multiple generations of her own family as well as those she has cared for as an early childhood provider. As a mother of three grown children and a grandmother to 11, Jan has also enjoyed the smiles and giggles of over 275 children that have been in her care since she got her start in the child care industry. Over the past three decades of providing care for little ones, she has also experienced seven instances where she has watched a child and their parent when they were a child.
It's apparent why so many families have entrusted her with the safety and well-being of their children – Jan makes every effort to offer exceptional care in a quality environment where the children can feel like they’re at home.
You could say Jan’s call to be a child care provider stems from her own mother, Juile Grim, who opened Granny’s Corner Daycare in Ord in the early 1990’s. Jan began working at Granny’s Corner with her mother in March of 1993. After noticing the demand for child care, the mother-daughter duo branched out and licensed a second child care facility on the same block which would become TLC Daycare. She then grew into a new facility where she was licensed for 22 children and had three employees. Since then, Jan has downsized her business and is currently licensed to care for eight children.
Jan, who is on Step 2 of Step Up To Quality (Nebraska’s child care quality rating system), stives to continuously improve the quality of care and environment of her child care business. She was recently awarded a grant from the Loup Valley Childhood Initiative to help with the cost of replacing the carpet in the main play spaces of her daycare. With the new, plush carpet installed, the children can’t get enough of playtime on the floor whether they’re building pillow towers and forts, playing with toy cars and baby dolls or snuggling their favorite blanket.
Jan also works to continue her education so she can best serve the children in her care whether it’s related to health and safety or developmental disorders. Many years ago, a parent approached her to discuss their recent learning that their child was diagnosed with autism. Not having experience or much understanding of the disorder, Jan was quick to learn all she could about the developmental disorder and ways she could best communicate and care for that child. She’s also studied the neurodevelopmental disorder, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and has found so much benefit as an early childhood provider by further understanding the needs of the children she cares for.
Although she has retirement on her mind, she mentioned that’s still several years away which is a blessing for the little ones in our community because Jan has a heart full of wisdom, joy and compassion to share that will continue to benefit our youngest generation of community members.
