Kelly Lightfoot, owner was the only interview from a nanny referral agency from the Hawaiian Islands.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008 Destination Nanny Services:
What You Should Know
Travel is On Topic at FOXBusiness.com in April. From tips on booking cheap vacations to flying with your pets, we explore your top travel ideas. Check back throughout the month to find out what you need to know.
While many hotels and resorts offer programs to keep children occupied for a few hours, very few have sitters on-call for private use, leaving vacationers to rely on local nanny services. But how cost-effective is it to hire a nanny at your destination? More importantly, is it safe? Here's some expert advice to help you make the right decision.
Hiring a nanny at your destination is usually cheaper than bringing a nanny to your destination
One reason vacationers decide to hire nanny services after arriving at their destination is because bringing a nanny from home is just too expensive....
A credible agency will be able to prove it
Experts say you should always book a nanny through an agency. A credible agency should be licensed, bonded and insured to protect its nannies and clients in the event of an accident or theft.
"You have to have that kind of insurance to protect yourself and your nannies," said Kelly Lightfoot, owner of Happy Kids, a nanny service agency with locations in Hawaii and Arizona.
Why is agency credibility so important? Nannies that enlist with agencies are required to go through a rigorous interview process and pass multiple screenings: city, state and nationwide criminal background checks, sex offender registry scans, credit checks and even driving history checks.
"You can tell a lot about people just by their driving records," Lightfoot said.
Still, it's best to ask around, do your research, and be very cautious....
MISSION
STATEMENT
Kelly
Lightfoot started answering phones at the Happy Kids agency when it had just a
few nannies who would sit for families when visiting the island of Maui. She
found that she loved talking with Mother’s and Fathers always attending to meet
every detail need and request that a parent would have. Very soon when the
former owner one didn’t want the agency and two wanted to sell the agency,
Kelly one leaped at the chance and two Kelly was offered the business. Once
Kelly bought Happy Kids, the agency began to grow and the nannies with Happy
Kids, still to this day feel like one of the Happy Kids family. To date (since
1991) Happy Kids has provided nannies for over 5,000+ families, from 4 week olds
to teenagers to special needs children. Kelly is proud to have many nannies
that have been with Happy Kids for years with returning families year after
year, some even having had additions to the family!
Kelly knows
that many times families are often very nervous about leaving their children
with someone new and in a place far from home. She also knows that other
families have the lifestyle of having a nanny at home and know exactly what they
need and want from a nanny. Many “discreet” and celebrity clients return year
after year because they know Kelly and the Happy Kids staff has provided the
utmost professional service, never over looking one detail for their family.
Happy Kids is
a referral agency and not a placement agency.
Nanny
agencies get a lot of press mostly of horror stories concerning a live-in nanny
or around other child care companies. Kelly is very adamant when it comes to
nannies being properly trained and experienced and meeting the national
background checks that every family should and do request.
She really
loves the opportunity to put people at ease in having a specially selected nanny
for their family. A good match you could say. She always takes time to get to
know the family, to make sure it is a perfect fit.
Happy Kids in
the last three years has added websites and other locations (three to date).
Maui home office, Kauai, Arizona with talks of expanding to some of the other
islands, California and Florida) and expanded into providing excellent staffing
for and organizing occasions such as, weddings, corporate meetings etc… that are
suited for kids and or families.
Happy Kids
has plans to continue expanding to many other locations (Franchising and/or
affiliates) and will always have a personal and hands-on approach with those
locations to make sure the recognized quality and care represents her product.
Happy Kids
loves kids so much that merchandising products are being developed that help the
family and the children. Partial proceeds will go to the Cancer and Autism
Foundation organization.
Happy Kids is
members of the BBB, APNA (Association of Professional Nanny Services), HVCB,
Maui’s Visitor’s Bureau and has a certificate of good standing in the State of
Hawaii.
