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Five years ago, Maddie Phillips interviewed for Family Relief Nursery having never worked for a non-profit. She was new to Oregon and had long held a wish to work in mental health. Reading the job listing, she had a hunch that home visiting and early intervention care might be a good first step.
Maddie was drawn to the field after hearing the positive impact behavioral health care had on her late father while he was deployed in Iraq. While she had initially hoped to work with veterans in her community, her new position revealed where so much of that pain begins. “It starts in early childhood,” she says, “If we're able to help these children thrive from such a young age, then as they grow emotionally, hopefully, if any of them decide to go off and take on heavy careers like that, they’ll have the skills at that point to ask for help.”
Soon Maddie learned the value of holistic family support. Her first family was a mother with a two- month-old, new to the area and far from relatives, with a husband working long days. It was clear that mom needed help. Maddie asked to hold her baby so mom could take a breath. She eased the family into respite care at their own pace. When the baby's developmental screenings showed a need for problem-solving practice, she sat on the floor with stacking blocks and cheered him on. That child is now nearly five, and the family is still with us.
Maddie went on to lead our North Douglas site, serving one of the most rural, isolated communities in the county. She hoped to bring all our locations closer together, so when the Program Director position opened at the end of 2024, she leapt at the opportunity.
Today she makes a point of being at each location in person. "Even if you tell people to reach out, they won't always reach out," she says. She sends teachers between sites to learn from one another and brings the whole agency together for community events.
She is equally committed to growing our own. When an opportunity arose for staff to earn an early education certificate, she texted the people she had in mind, and six applied. "That made my week," she says. She is quick to credit the teachers who buy classroom supplies with their own money. "To work for a nonprofit, you have to have a nonprofit heart."
Maddie misses home visits, but she treasures her bird's-eye view. Ask her what she hopes children remember about Family Relief Nursery, though, and her answer is simple: "We're with the kids for three hours a day," she tells her teachers. She wants every one of those hours to be full of play, discovery, and joy, whether it's circle time, a morning outside, or a first paintbrush on paper. The joy is what she hopes they take home.
