After more than four decades helping shape the lives of young children and their families in the Ōtūmoetai community, Sharon van Ameringen has stepped down from her role at Shalom Kindergarten.
Van Ameringen helped establish Shalom in April 1984, working with a friend to create a Christian preschool in the church hall of what was then Tauranga Assembly of God, now C3 City Church.
After taking time away to raise her children, she returned as manager in 1998 – a role she’d held ever since.
Sharon van Ameringen at Shalom Kindergarten. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
What began in two rooms behind the church had grown into a purpose-built early childhood centre for children aged 2 to 6. The new facility opened in 2000, after van Ameringen helped secure Ministry of Education funding for the building.
The centre had also evolved from a sessional preschool into an all-day early learning service, with its staff growing from two fulltime workers and relievers to a team of about 12.
“I’ve never owned it,” van Ameringen said. “I’ve always managed it for the trust.”
For her, one of the biggest changes in her 41 years had been the amount of administration involved in running an early childhood centre.
“There’s lots of paperwork,” she said, referring to the reporting, teaching standards, assessments and mentoring now required alongside the day-to-day work with children and families.
Sharon van Ameringen and Miller Collier, 4, at Shalom Kindergarten. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
But the memories she treasured most were about people and shared experiences – trikeathons in the carpark, trolley cars built by teachers and children, visits from animals, fire engines and ambulances, excursions, beach walks, pyjama days and pancake breakfasts.
One of her favourite traditions was Father’s Night, when fathers or another special male figure in a child’s life were invited to spend an evening at the kindergarten.
“It was such a lovely way to meet dads who perhaps we wouldn’t have met otherwise,” she said.
Family remained an important part of the Shalom culture, with former children returning to visit and some children being the offspring of former Shalom families.
“One of my teachers is on maternity leave, and she was a kindy child. She started here when she was 3,” van Ameringen said.
Shalom head teacher Raewyn Stewart, who’d worked under van Ameringen’s leadership for 25 years, said she’d been passionate about creating a Christian centre where children and families were welcomed and supported.
She highlighted van Ameringen’s commitment to inclusion, including children with additional and diverse needs.
“These tamariki and their whānau are welcomed and supported to grow and develop alongside their peers,” Stewart said.
Miller Collier, 4, with Sharon van Ameringen at Shalom Kindergarten. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
About 20% of Shalom’s roll today have diverse needs, according to van Ameringen, while about one-third come from families of different cultures. The staff represented about eight cultures.
“Everyone is welcome,” van Ameringen said.
She said the centre was sometimes assumed to be only for church families, or even Jewish families because of the name Shalom, but most in the wider community now understand it is open to all.
The name itself had its own story.
Van Ameringen said she was thinking about what to call the new preschool when the word ‘Shalom’ came into her mind. The following day, a colleague independently suggested the same name after having a dream about children in a peaceful environment.
“That had to be its name,” van Ameringen said.
Today, Shalom continued to draw families from Ōtūmoetai, Mount Maunganui, Pāpāmoa and Ōhauiti.
C3 City Church senior pastor Elena Hood said her family had experienced Shalom first-hand, with her four children attending the centre.
“We are so grateful to Sharon for working tirelessly for over four decades to create, lead and build the happy place that is Shalom Kindy,” Hood said.
She remembered van Ameringen and her staff as always having “a ready smile and a friendly word of encouragement for weary parents”.
Sharon van Ameringen at Shalom Kindergarten. Photo / Kelly O’Hara
For van Ameringen, the greatest reward was seeing the difference the centre could make.
“I just love seeing that we do make a difference in families’ lives and in children’s lives,” she said. “I love seeing children learning and asking questions.”
She hoped Shalom would continue to be “a vibrant community centre where all people in the community feel welcomed and part of the Shalom family”.
Retirement does not look particularly quiet for van Ameringen. She plans to spend more time with her husband Joel and their Saturday congregation, as well as walking, crafting, reading and cooking.
She has already started to try new things – her first Monday without work was spent line-dancing.
Looking back on her years at Shalom, van Ameringen said, “I’d like to thank the Shalom family and the community here for supporting us over all these years and for coming for a visit and just being part of a community of ever-changing people”.