HARTFORD—The mornings at Paraiso Infantil Day Care are an exciting time for many students, staff members, and volunteers. A flurry of “Hellos” and “Buenos Dias” fills the center as parents and children arrive. 

As a participating site in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of CT Foster Grandparent Program, the daycare welcomes local senior citizen volunteers on a daily basis.

The program’s elderly participants assist teachers with setting up classrooms and running student activities but they mostly spend one-on-one time with the daycare’s children, supporting them academically and emotionally. 

“We call them our busy bees,” said Early Childhood Coordinator Olga Toledo of Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Hartford. “They’re going to the office, they’re making us breakfast, they’re making sure that classrooms have the supplies they need…”

Located on Wadsworth Street in Hartford, Paraiso Infantil Day Care is a multicultural hub: about 95 percent of its students identify as Hispanic/Latino who come from bilingual households, the center’s entire staff is fluent in both English and Spanish, and the majority of Foster Grandparent volunteers speak Spanish as their first language, according to Toledo. 

Read the full story on the CT Latino News website, ctlatinonews.com.