Grant Spotlight: Educating Children During COVID at LUMPS
Each year, the Foundation awards grants to a variety of ministries across the Virginia Conference. In 2021, Larchmont United Methodist Preschool (LUMPS), an outreach ministry of Larchmont UMC since 1941 and a preschool servicing many military families in the community, was awarded a grant to assist in educating students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Meg Ditty, Director of LUMPS, shares her perspective of how the grant impacted the preschool while also sharing the unique challenges LUMPS experienced in 2020.
“At LUMPS, our mission is to provide a nurturing and supportive environment for students ages 2.5 through Kindergarten. Our teachers focus on the development of the whole child, reaching all the developmental domains: social, emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual.
The Foundation grant awarded to our preschool directly impacted our ability to offer the best education to our students. Because of the Coronavirus pandemic, we decided to offer a combination class of First and Second grade students. We realized there was a real need in our community for children and families to have in-person instruction. What started out as a class of 5 quickly grew to a full class of 10. The families have been so very thankful to Ms. Amy and LUMPS for providing such a dynamic and much needed socially interactive early elementary class. These students have blossomed despite the challenges of COVID-19.
After shutting down on March 13, 2020, we needed to reevaluate our operating budget for the 2020 – 2021 school year. It was very important for us to continue to bring our heart and service to this community to the very best of our ability. CDC mandates altered the number of students we could enroll further challenging our bottom line. Again, the Foundation grant gave us the opportunity to operate from a place of “YES” and not no. We said “Yes” to our 100th Day of School celebrations. We said “Yes” to Easter Celebrations. We said “Yes” to celebrating our Mom’s with Muffin’s for Mom. We said “yes” to purchasing new books and supplies for the classrooms. We are so thankful and blessed by this generous gift!
I always explain to new families touring our school that LUMPS is a special place. When you enter our halls and listen to our teachers and children learning, laughing, singing, you will feel it. You will see the smiles, feel the warmth, and sense the comfort. This year we were not able to allow any individuals into our school. Parents dropped off their children outside. I did not give any tours during school hours. We did not have ANY person in our school aside from our staff and students. This was my biggest challenge! How do I show the LOVE we have inside these walls, when no one comes through our door? Well, we brought the love outside! Although we were always masked, you can still see the smiles, it’s in the eyes! I must thank our LUMPS families for their dedication to our strict COVID-19 policies and their grace in doing so. We have made it through the school year with zero cases of COVID-19 from our teachers and students!
This little neighborhood school is a cornerstone in the community. There are many military families that transition in and out of this area, and LUMPS is a soft place for their children to land. We have the privilege of teaching and nurturing these young children, of getting to know their families, siblings, grandparents, pets. They fill our hearts with the purest kindness and joy that only children can bring. Our lives are fuller because of the families that choose us to love and teach their most precious gifts.
My advice to anyone who is interested in getting involved with any preschool ministry in their area is to say “YES”. Your hearts will be forever changed by your involvement. “Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.” Psalm 127:3
Thank you again Virginia United Methodist Foundation. Your grant to this preschool impacted us greatly.”
The Foundation will begin accepting grant applications for the 2021-2022 awards in September 2021. To learn more about available grants, please click here.
