The Nannies of Glen Park

Under the trees at Glenhurst Park in Atwater Village, you might find a group of 20 nannies who have been gathering there for years. They socialize, let the children play on the playsets, and celebrate many, many birthdays. Each nanny has a different story about how they found both the park and the group. This is the story of Davinia Urbina, one that starts far from the park—in Nicaragua. 

Born in the capital, Managua, following her parents’ split, she moved up north with her mom’s family when she was six. Here in Somoto, she lived a calm childhood surrounded by her eleven uncles and their family. 

“I used to take care of my two little siblings. My mom would go to work, and even though my uncles and cousins were around, I still had to keep a close eye on my brothers.”

Growing up surrounded by relatives, Davinia learned very quickly the importance of family. In good times and bad they would be there to help each other. 

At that time, during a trip to Switzerland, Davinia’s mom fell in love with a Swiss man and they married. Together with her siblings and mom, they all moved to this new country to begin a new life as a family. Although thousands of miles away from Nicaragua, Davinia never forgot about the values that she was reared with by her family in Somoto. 

She lived there for five years, spending many of her formative teen years in this new environment. She quickly learned German and familiarized herself with the local customs and traditions, but was never fully able to acclimate. She missed Nicaragua too much. When the opportunity arose to return, she decided to come back to pursue a college education. 

“I was always good in school; I really liked it. I went to university, which is called UNICA, Universidad Catolica de Nicaragua, and I studied international relations because I envisioned myself as an ambassador for Nicaragua. I did really well; I was actually one of the top eight students in my graduating class.”

Even though she had great grades and was eager to represent her country, she couldn’t find an inroad to help kickstart her diplomatic dreams. 

“Everything is political, especially in those kinds of jobs. It’s hard to get your footing without having the right connections.”

After graduating from university, she worked in Costa Rica as a project consultant and later returned to Nicaragua. At that time, her dad and one of her brothers were already living in California, and her dad filed for residency on her behalf. Years later, once her paperwork was approved, she moved to Washington D.C. to stay with an aunt, and paid for her expenses by helping rear her kids. She then moved to Paramount, CA to live with her brother and dedicated her time to job hunting and attending English classes in the evenings.

“I spent six months without a job. I wanted to make the most out of my unemployment, so I went to English school at night. I progressed up to the last level, level six, and I also joined the citizenship classes.”

With a lot of hard-work, she was able to find work as a caretaker, looking after children and seniors, but she grew disillusioned and decided to explore other options and that is how she found her current job as a nanny.  

“I was looking through Care.com and this particular job description caught my attention, because it mentioned that they were looking for someone who spoke Spanish, so I applied.”

She was hired and has been taking care of that same child ever since she was one month old. Now, six years later, she continues to look after her and has helped her to become fully bilingual. 

“When I was hired, teaching her to speak Spanish was one of the requirements. It’s the only language we speak. Now she speaks, reads, and writes in Spanish perfectly.” 

___

To pass the time during the pandemic, she would often walk around the neighborhood pushing her stroller up and down the streets. The sight of Davinia and the stroller soon became a familiar sight, and before long, another neighborhood nanny approached her to tell her about a park where the nannies would go and hang out, and she invited Davinia to join. 

I told her that I don’t like driving; I get scared. Then she said, ‘I’ll go in the car ahead of you, and you can follow me.’ I gathered some courage and went.”

Now, going to the nanny park is part of her routine. At the park, Davinia was able to meet and socialize with other nearby nannies, and an added bonus was that the kids could make new friends, too.

“Everyday I would take the child I nanny to the park. Sometimes there would be a group in the morning and one in the afternoon, but now the morning and afternoon groups have kind of merged, and I just stay all day. The kids play, and the nannies chat, and we especially love to celebrate all the kids’ birthdays.”

Besides socializing, the nannies have also helped each other out during times of need. 

“We have a group chat with all the nannies; it’s called “Nannies de Glen Park.” We send each other messages and use it to secure shift coverage or share job opportunities.  A few months ago, one of the nannies’ mom passed away, and we all helped out and raised funds for her funeral expenses. We always try to support each other.” 

Davinia not so sure how much longer she’ll keep going to the park, since the child she nannies might soon outgrow it. But what she knows for sure is that in these past few years, she’s made a lot of great memories, including birthday celebrations with the other nannies and their kids. 

“My friend who invited me told me that people used to come to the park before, and gradually everyone started arriving by word of mouth. That’s how I ended up at this park.”