Centre director Jenell George, cook Rowena Beer and administrator Yvonne Cutler are all leaving after more than 50 years of combined dedicated service to the centre.

After nearly 30 years working in early childhood education, 11 of them spent at Mitchell, Jenell is ready to hang up her painting smock and take some well-deserved down-time.

The director, who led the centre to the coveted and rarely achieved “Exceptional Rating” in all categories of the National Quality Standard Assessment, says the time is right for her to leave with the centre in such great shape.

“I have loved this centre from the moment I saw the beautiful outdoor space and met the community of people who come here,” Jenell said.

“It is a hard decision to leave because the people here, both big and small, have changed my life in so many wonderful and meaningful ways. 

“I’m going to miss hearing the laughter in the rooms, and walking through the beautiful natural environment of our yard, and smelling Rowie’s cooking!”

Of her many achievements at Mitchell, Jenell says she is most proud of establishing the sister centre partnership between Mitchell and the Towri MACS.

“For me, working with Towri and sharing culture in these early years builds a strong and lifelong understanding and partnership for indigenous and non-indigenous kids toward reconciliation.”

Jenell has also been a driving force behind the highly successful Bathurst Family Fun Day and the Transition to School program and has worked tirelessly with other community groups focused on child welfare and protection. 

Jenell – who is leaving to spend time with her family, in particular to help care for her baby nephew in Victoria – hopes the community-based philosophy at Mitchell has been felt throughout Bathurst.

“I hope people have always felt welcomed and supported and loved and free to be themselves at Mitchell. I always did and that is an incredible gift to receive and one I will always be grateful for.

“Since I decided to leave, I have been overwhelmed by people saying how I have impacted their lives, but really it is the people around me, the families in the centre, that have touched me deeply and will live with me forever.”

For cook Rowena – or Rowie, as she is known to the families of the centre – the one thing she isn’t going to miss is making morning and afternoon tea for more than 50 children each day.

“I hate to think how many loaves of bread I have buttered and vegemited, or how many oranges I have cut up over the years. Thousands I expect!”

After 14 years providing delicious and nutritious food to the many little hungry mouths of Mitchell, Rowie felt it was time to move on.

“I came here originally because the daytime hours suited my family and I was excited to work amongst children,” she said.

“I have so much fun here. I get to talk to the children and dance when there is music playing in the rooms, and I get to dress up!”

Rowie is so well-known for her passion and commitment to dress-up days that the centre declared the whole of last week an official dress up week in honour of her leaving.

So popular is Rowie’s cooking that two years ago, when the centre produced a cookbook of family recipes, all the children put in requests for which of Rowie’s secret recipes they wanted to know, and a section was devoted to them.

After 26 years of being the friendly face at the counter of Mitchell, Yvonne Cutler has retired. Sadly, much of Yvonne’s time recently has been complicated by illness, but she has been buoyed by the love coming from the many families that miss seeing her every day.

“Yvonne had been the first face that people saw as they walked in the door for so long that she’d almost become part of the furniture, in the best possible way,” Jenell said.

“It’s been a big change over the last six months not having Yvonne here, and once the children and their families found out she was unwell and in hospital, you saw such an outpouring of love for her that there was no doubting how important she is to the life of this centre.”

Flowers, cards, drawings and other gifts piled up.

“People sometimes take for granted the person in the office that quietly goes about their work, but not with Yvonne,” Jenell said. 

“She would play with the kids while parents paid bills or did paperwork, cuddle and care for them when she helped in the yard and just generally be a beautiful and wonderful person in their lives. 

“Everyone needs that, and Yvonne gave that to all of us.”