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DENINU KU'E/FORT RESOLUTION - A new daycare opened in Fort Resolution on Dec. 5.

Called Li'l Darlin' Daycare, it expands on a part-time preschool that has operated since 1997. The daycare/preschool is a project of the Deninu Ku'e First Nation.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in Fort Resolution on Dec. 5 for a new daycare, which is an expanded version of an existing preschool. Angus Beaulieu, a community elder, cut the ribbon. He was accompanied by culture and Chipewyan instructor Violet Bailey, left, acting Chief Louis Balsillie of Deninu Ku'e First Nation and daycare co-ordinator Kim Beck. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

Acting Chief Louis Balsillie said it is really important to have such a service.

"I think this is a benefit to the community and working parents in the community," Balsillie said.

Fort Resolution has not had a daycare since 1994.

Rennovations have been completed on the building but it is still to undergo inspections. The renovations included a new fenced play yard.

Kim Beck, co-ordinator of Li'l Darlin' Daycare, is not sure how many children will be served by the daycare/preschool.

"I would like 12, but there might be a waiting list," she said.

The facility, which will employ three people, may begin accepting children by the second week of January, said Beck.

The new daycare will be for children aged 18 months to three years and the preschool will be for ages three to five.

Children will be accepted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, and breakfast and lunch will be served.

The new daycare is named after the late Florence Balsillie, who worked at the preschool for seven years before she died in 2004.

"Her nickname was darlin', so I named it Li'l Darlin' after her," Beck said.

Dollie Simon, whose two grandchildren will be enrolled in the daycare/preschool, is impressed with the new facility.

"It's beautiful," she said.

Simon is the daughter of Florence Balsillie.

"She's probably looking down and very pleased, especially since her great-grandchildren will be coming here," Simon said.

She added that she and her family are honoured the daycare has been named after her mother.

The project was funded with $70,000 from the federal Aboriginal Human Resources Development Strategy.