Scott Swanson
After 30 years as director of Little Promises Preschool, which she founded, Anita Hutchins needed to find someone who shared her vision of a need to teach children to develop into adults equipped to “successfully meet their world head on.”
Hutchins, who started the program in 1982 at the Evangelical Church in Sweet Home, had decided to retire.
She needed a successor “who could take on the ministry,” Hutchins said.
“One who would accept the call because of the love of children. One who would turn discipline into a time to teach making right choices. Who could stand firm, show compassion and sometimes hold laughter until the child is out of hearing distance. Also, someone with experience and a good business sense.”
When she met Nelia Taraski, who was new to town but already deeply involved in a variety of ways, she knew she’d found the right replacement.
“God provided,” said Hutchins.
Taraski, 43, moved to Sweet Home last year when her husband, Pete, became pastor of Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in June 2012.
A native of Monterey, Mexico, who met Pete when he was working in the construction of “a really nice bookstore” in town, she arrived in the U.S. in December of 1994, after they’d married two weeks after they met.
Nelia Taraski was one of 13 siblings, so she knows children. Plus she has three of her own – Mark, 16, Noah, 14 and Genesis, 8.
“Sometimes it feels like I have 15,” she said, chuckling.
Pete is a native of Texas and they lived in Conroe, about 50 miles north of Houston, until they moved to Sweet Home.
In Conroe, the Taraskis had been involved in a nonprofit called Yahweh Street Ministries, named after the most reverent Hebrew word for God, that Pete founded in to serve the homeless in Montgomery County, Texas. It eventually grew to include work with juveniles, street evangelism, Bible studies, and organization of the National Day of Prayer and LifeChain activities in Conroe.
Pete had also been a longtime chaplain for the local police and fire departments.
Nelia, who worked as a county court clerk, also served as a counselor for the court system, holding Bible studies for “young ladies” 7 through 17.
“We had some 7-year-olds who had committed some horrific crimes,” she said.
Taraski said she came to Little Promises with a clear grasp of the challenges.
“I understand hardship,” she said. “My love of nonprofits was what attracted me to Little Promises.”
She says she was recruited by Hutchins for the job, but it was a little more complicated than that.
The Taraskis and their church were serving ice cream at Wiley Creek Community in August when Hutchins went there to take her mother-in-law, Marjorie Hutchins, to the ice cream feed.
“I was very impressed with the conduct of her children,” Hutchins said.
Shortly thereafter, her husband Larry went to get his hair cut at Buddy’s Barber Shop and was talking to the barber, Jacke Leo, about his wife’s search for someone to replace her as director of the school.
“Pete Taraski was sitting there and he overheard Larry, and he said, ‘My wife might be interested.’ He gave Larry his card and Larry brought it to me.”
Leo offered a resounding recommendation for Nelia, Hutchins said, as did others who knew her.
“I just felt this urging to call her, so I did,” Hutchins said. “We met for lunch and it was a very positive thing. I texted Nelia later and said, ‘I feel like you’re my sister from another mother, with the same Father,’ referring to God.
“I can easily find someone who can do the bookwork for this organization, but I can’t find just anybody who has the heart for children and for the program. Nelia had it.”
Others agree, including the Little Promises board, she said.
Taraski said she’s excited by the opportunity.
“I’m humbled that parents trust me with their children,” she said. “It’s a responsibility I take to heart. It’s personal. For the board to trust me, I hope I can live up to Anita’s standards.”
Hutchins said that’s the kind of attitude she thinks will make Taraski a success.
“One of my philosophies is that to be a leader, you have to be a servant,” she said.
Taraski, 43, takes over leadership of the school, which in 2004 moved to its current facilities in the former Pleasant Valley School buildings and today numbers 72 preschool students, a daycare licensed for 110, approximately 25 children active in the Friday program and a staff of 17 – plus volunteers.
Hutchins isn’t really leaving. She plans to teach a Tiny Promises class of 3-year-olds three days a week, while Larry, her husband, is working on upkeep and repairs at the school.
“We will be able to spend more time together and still remain active and give back to the children and community we are proud to be a part of,” she said.
Taraski said she plans to take advantage of Hutchins’ presence.
“I look forward to many years of serving these children and having the mentorship and training from Anita,” she said.
“One of the things my parents taught me is loyalty and dedication. I hope whatever the Lord sets before me, I will do 100 percent.”