Finding Support
When the world came to a screeching halt in 2020 due to the pandemic, medical professionals like Emily and David Cohen, an OB/GYN and a pathologist respectively, were sent into a tailspin. Neither could stop working or work remotely. “The lockdown didn’t change things for us professionally,” Emily shares. “People have babies and need medical care no matter what.”
“Life in a dual-physician household is complicated,” David explains. And it was intensified by the sudden standstill’s effects on the couple’s toddler, Ezra, who has special needs and thrived on routine and social activity. The Cohens also stressed over scrambling to juggle childcare and planning contingencies to get ahead of the evolving pandemic.
Before everything went virtual, Ezra was loving his days at The Weinstein School at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. He would wake up chanting, “School! School! School!” and would beg to go to preschool on the weekends. An only child, Ezra struggled at home with limited space and activity and without peer models and behavior expectations. The energetic boy began acting out. “Losing therapy services and the structure and socialization he had at preschool was really hard,” Emily remembers.
“As parents, we weighed the health risks and Ezra’s developmental and emotional needs,” Emily reveals. “We decided we had to get him back in the classroom.” The doctors say they felt assured by the MJCCA’s safety precautions, including air filter upgrades, frequent sanitization, designated cohorts, mask requirements, and visitor restrictions. “The Weinstein School had a very strong plan in place,” David shares. “It was such a blessing for us, knowing we could trust the preschool.”
So, the very day The Weinstein School building opened, Ezra returned. His behavior improved and it was easy to see he was much happier. “Once he got to preschool, he was back on track,” Emily says. And three months after their now one-year-old daughter, Aviva, was born, she too attended The Weinstein School.
With both kids happy and thriving, the Cohens have settled back into their more “normal” hectic life. “It would not have been possible to do what we do without The Weinstein School,” David admits. The couple credits the preschool’s administration, teachers, and facilitators for running an exceptional program and for their amazing communication; it has truly given their family a sense of peace.
It would not have been possible to do what we do without the MJCCA and The Weinstein School.