The nursery school that has been a staple of the community for the past 37 years closed its doors last week, and a group of parents are fighting to keep the school open. Several have been sending letters to Pastor Nelson Kalombo Ngoy of the Community United Methodist Church of East Norwich, which houses the nursery school, expressing their love for the school and asking for ways to help save it.
Jane Obando of East Norwich, who enrolled both of her sons at Wesley Nursery School last September, says she was shocked to learn that school was closing so abruptly.
Obando says she first heard about the installation of the Verizon cell antenna in the steeple of the church last December, when a letter was sent to the parents. The letter, she says, made it clear that the plans for installation were definite, though no time frame was given. A lot of mothers started to worry and did their own research on the impact of cell antennae on children, and began looking at other schools. Obando was concerned, but didn’t think the antenna would go up so fast. Then, she says, in April, they learned it would happen in June and “panic ensued.”
“I guess Verizon assured the pastor that it’s not dangerous but, who knows? I don’t want my kids to be the example in 15 years,” she says. She and other parents started enrolling their kids at other schools.
She and her sister, Beth Tagliamonti, are both taking their kids to the Learning Tree this fall. “It’s fine, but the children loved their teachers and other kids…I hate to move them.”
Tagliamonti had her 2-year-old daughter enrolled in the summer camp and was planning on sending her to the preschool this fall, until learning about the cell antenna installation. She also wrote a letter to the pastor expressing her concerns.
“A quick Internet search revealed that not much is known about the effects of long term close exposure to a cell tower, especially in young children. There are some studies which suggest that it could be quite hazardous, especially in such a close proximity as the tower in the church is to the nursery school,” says Tagliamonti. “I am not willing to take any such chance with my child.”
Obando took her kids out because of the cell antenna, though she is sad to see the school close and was hoping for a way to convince the church to remove it.
“Wesley has a very happy environment…they let children be children,” she says.
During her email communication with the pastor, she learned of the church’s financial troubles, and says that if they had known about the financial problems, she would’ve been more than willing to help with fundraising.
“My two boys ask me every day if they are going to school because they love it, which says so much about Wesley,” says Obando. “They are disappointed when I tell them ‘no’.”
Tagliamonti says, “I most certainly would send my daughters to Wesley if the cell tower is removed.”
Kathleen Diaz of East Norwich has also reached out to the pastor. She says that when they first received the letter from school about the Verizon cell antenna, she and her husband decided not to re-enroll their 2-year-old son at Wesley. However, she says after months of praying, speaking to others, and doing research, they decided that he would in fact be enrolled at Wesley for the 2014-2015 school year.
“Our decision was made because we want the teachers of Wesley to be the ones educating and caring for our son,” says Diaz. “He attended camp all but one week in July. He was due to finish out the camp session which was abruptly canceled. This, and the closing of the school has put an enormous strain on our family, as we are now left scrambling to find another preschool for September. Even at the young age of 3, our son has an attachment to this school, and I do not feel we can recreate what was Wesley at any other preschool he will attend.”
Kathy Nastri, a member of the Community Methodist Church, said, “It was with great sadness that the Church Council was unable to keep the school open after several agonizing meetings, and had to make a decision in order to give parents an opportunity to make plans for the upcoming school year, to close our beloved Nursery School…Due to a decline in our church attendance over the years, the rise in heating costs, snow removal, insurance, our ability to continue supporting the Nursery School is no longer possible. The sadness being expressed by everyone is certainly a testament to the amazing program the teachers and the church ran at the school.”
In an email to the pastor, Diaz wrote, “Please let it be known that our family supports the operation of Wesley, and we will be more than willing to help find an alternative to closing down the school.”
As of press time, she had not received a response. Pastor Nelson Kalombo Ngoy had also not returned calls for comment from the Enterprise-Pilot.
