THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 16, 1996 TAG: 9602150173
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 24 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARK YOUNG, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 83 lines
Ruby Moore, 80, enjoys being with young children. As a mother of three, the stepmother of three more and grandmother to 14, she's given a lot of tender loving care to a lot of youngsters.
But, she's not finished yet.
She's still handing out hugs and kisses, changing diapers, feeding bottles and playing peekaboo.
Twenty years ago, at a time when most adults are content to spoil their grandkids during occasional visits, Moore got a job as a child care giver.
She went to work at Kindercare in the Great Neck area in 1975 after her children were grown. At that time, her daughter, Sally Bielat, was the area director and Moore asked her daughter if there might be a spot for her there. Though she's served at different posts, including three years as cook, Moore found her niche in the baby room and has been there continuously since it opened.
From her rocking chair near the window of the infant room, ``Miss Ruby,'' as she is often called, referred to this as her first job. Of course that doesn't include being a wife and mother and raising six children. ``I used to baby-sit when I was growing up,'' she said. ``You didn't get paid for it then. You just did it if you wanted to.'' Moore had two younger sisters but also baby-sat for neighbors in the largely rural area that is now Chesapeake.
Today at 80, ``Miss Ruby'' can still make her job look easy, at least after lunch when contented 18-month-olds crawled about happily or sat pondering a favorite toy. ``You should have come at noon. They were all hungry and crying,'' she said.
Moore said she doesn't notice the noise so much anymore. ``As you get older you don't notice the things that they do that used to bother you so much. They don't seem so important.''
She is characteristically modest when asked to give advice for parents and other caregivers. Though she claims she has no secrets, she suggests that parents take the time to play with their children; let them know they love them; and spend time with them. ``That's what they need,'' she said.
Long time co-worker Jean Brown said Moore is successful with young children because, ``She has a natural talent for it because she has such a good imagination.'' Brown said children will often bring their drawings to Moore and she will see precious things in their scribblings. It's not unusual to come into the infant room and find Moore sitting on the floor with several children and their toys. ``If you like what you do, the job is never hard,'' Miss Ruby said.
Moore said she can hardly believe she's been on the job 20 years. Kindercare recognized her contributions at a Christmas party in December, awarding her a jeweled pin, a certificate of appreciation and a check for $1,000.
Longevity on the job seems to be the rule there. Donna Soulerin has worked alongside Moore for 12 years. With only 10 years of cries, diapers, snacks and smiles, Ruby Jackson is the new kid in town. ``We work at this because we want to. You hear a lot of bad things about some day care centers, but there are good ones,'' Jackson said.
Moore and her co-workers occasionally see children they held as infants who are now in high school. Some of Moore's young charges have continued using Kindercare's services until they were 12. To some of these kids and their parents Miss Ruby is almost a member of the family.
Virginia Beach social worker Dorothy Maynard and her husband have three children at Kindercare. They first met Miss Ruby nine years ago, and their children have gone from the infant room all the way to afterschool care.
Dorothy Maynard said she remembers the sense of peace she got whenever she would come into the infant room. ``No matter what time of day my husband or I would come in, there would be Miss Ruby. She was always so calm and relaxed. Sometimes she would have the baby on her lap. Other children would be around her, walking or crawling on the floor. You always had the sense that she was happy with them and that they were being well cared for.''
She added, ``That's so important when you have to leave your babies with someone.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Ruby Moore, 80, has worked at the Great Neck-area Kindercare since
1975. It's not unusual to find her sitting on the floor with several
children and their toys.
KEYWORDS: PROFILE by CNB