Coulda been at Hooters

I got the kind of phone call six weeks ago that many working parents long to receive. After nearly four years on a wait list (four years that, up until this phone call, would apparently not be enough), the coveted after-school program at our local elementary school had a place for him. Would we take it? Of course we would, particularly since it offers a six-year childcare solution for Cameron and means his little brother, Alister, will have dibs on a spot when he's big enough.

Let me start by saying that this is a stellar program the likes of which visionaries behind the proposed early learning initiative for Ontario schools would like to see made available for all. This program is right in the school, it has an optional hot-lunch program, the teachers and administrators are stellar, it's organized better than a Girl Guide cookie drive, and it has a reputation for being both fun and enriching.

There is a 33-page Parent Handbook on Policies and Procedures. The items to be provided before a child can be enrolled are found in Section 6.3, video and film policy in 5.12, dog policy (huh?) in 7.15, and so on.

But the part I really want to share with all of you is the very last bit, under "History of the Runnymede Adventure Club," and an excerpt is really the only thing that will do:

"Runnymede Adventure Club began operation in the fall of 1985 in a classroom in the school. It was originally named the Runnymede Hooters After School Program, based on the mascot of the school, the Owl.

"Due to the unfortunate and unanticipated slur associated with the word 'Hooters,' it was decided at the 1993 Annual General Meeting that, although the official and legally registered name of the program would continue to be Runnymede Hooters After School Program, we would create the Runnymede Adventure Club as a division of the Corporation, and for publicity and promotion and general operation purposes, we would refer to our program under the new name. In 1997, the Board of Directors agreed to make the name change official for all purposes."

Comments

[Joanna Zuk]

That is too funny. Have not heard this story before. I am (forgive me) hooting with laughter. We have been on that wait list for 2.5 years. No end in sight. Can Evelyn be Cameron's sister for a while?