Kathryn “Ms. K” Kaminski celebrates with a former student who surprised her as a gingerbread man during the The Gingerbread House’s 40th anniversary celebration.
For four decades, the Kaminski family and The Gingerbread House daycare facilities in Richmond and Rosenberg have showered children with love and introduced them to the joy of learning.
Friday marked the 40th anniversary of the original site at 2417 4th St. in Rosenberg where staff and students came together once more on the playground they once shared.
Teachers and classmates were able to reconnect through a collage of photos taken in the past 40 years and recollected those fond memories.
Alumni also reminisced over the old oak tree that has stood since the daycare’s inception, the white elephant statue from the old Rosenberg bowling alley, the old playground, the garden and the chicken coop.
Kathryn “Ms. K” Kaminski once thought her calling was at the state highway department where she worked as a secretary and engineer tech.
However in 1982, a small house on Fourth Street became available and without a daycare in town, Kaminski decided to translate her love for children into a business.
Through the support of her friends and family, The Gingerbread House was born and its impact is still felt to this day.
“There were only two daycares here before I started and when I went to drop my kids off, it just wasn’t a fit,” Kathryn said. “Daycares really got started in the early ‘80s and there were horror stories so we were always on the edge. I had no intentions of running a daycare but here we are and the rest is history.”
Attendees for The Gingerbread House’s 40th anniversary were greeted with a collage of photos spanning since 1982 of former students and teachers.
The center’s first class was 10 children during the summer of 1982. Now thousands of children and multiple generations have stepped foot inside The Gingerbread House.
Seeing the familiar faces all grown up and successful brought Kaminski to tears and remains the reason she has yet to fully step away.
“I’m not with them (children) like I used to be but seeing all of this says we made it,” Kaminski said. “These kids are very productive and now we are seeing their kids. We’ve had moms who went here as a kid, then taught here and then brought their kids here. It’s just surreal.”
The daycare began offering learning center programs, after school programs at Frost, Hubenak and Hutchinson elementary schools and summer camps as popularity skyrocketed.
In 2013, The Gingerbread Kids Academy expanded to 814 FM 2977 in Richmond.
The 10,000 square foot facility serves a modernized version of its original with large outdoor spaces, including a splash pad, for children to explore.
Despite the improvements to technology, Ms. K knew when she started she wanted to provide her students with a “natural” environment to promote creativity and playfulness.
“I always tell people you will not find a daycare nearby that has this much backyard and playground area,” Ms. K said. “You really can’t do it anymore. We have flower beds with gardens in all of the sections with tomatoes and cucumbers. We even have chickens that lay colored eggs. They get outside and they dig in dirt and that’s what I’m proudest of is having all this playard. It’s old fashioned.”
Kathryn “Ms. K” Kaminski celebrates with a former student who surprised her as a gingerbread man during the The Gingerbread House’s 40th anniversary celebration.
The Kaminski family had numerous colleagues and friends to thank including Susan Vangossen, The Gingerbread House Director, teacher Sherri Jones and all of the staff who have helped live out the daycare’s philosophy.
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