"Throwaway children" was how many had come to refer to them.
But after seeing them firsthand, Laura Briley was not about to discard the opportunity. She knew she had to do something.
The owner of Day Schools Inc. child care centers in Tulsa, Briley became aware of the plight of many children in Romania's orphanages - placed there and all but forgotten because their families were too poor to provide for them - during a vacation in 1990.
What she saw came to consume her.
For the next five years, Briley traveled back and forth from Tulsa to Romania. She opened a school there and worked to begin improving the orphanages, teaming with other professionals and volunteers.
Working for the welfare of children was nothing new to Briley. She had been doing it for more than a decade in Tulsa.
But with her Romania experience, she had entered a new phase as an advocate, educator and consultant for early childhood development worldwide.
Laura Jo Briley, a Tulsa native and graduate of Edison High School, died Thursday. She was 65.
A memorial service is set for 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Boston Avenue United Methodist Church under the direction of Moore's Rosewood Funeral Home.
Briley got into child care in the 1970s when she began working for Day Schools, founded by her brother, Craig Heidinger.
Despite having only a business background and no experience in the field, she learned as she went, employing a hands-on approach and developing a real passion for infants and toddlers.
She eventually bought the business from her brother.
By the time Briley traveled to Eastern Europe and witnessed how Romania's children had suffered under communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, the field had become a crusade and her life's work.
She was shocked not only by the sheer number of children in orphanages there, but also was especially concerned by the poor care for infants, who were often left in cribs and never held or attended to.
"It really hit her," Heidinger said. "These children didn't have anyone speaking out for them. So she decided that she would and that she would make a difference doing so."
Briley took a leading role in pushing to reform Romania's orphanages, promoting the methods of Dr. Emmi Pikler, a late Hungarian pediatrician who emphasized respect, love and attentive care in child development.
Briley also made it her mission to bring the Piklerian approach back home. She formed the nonprofit Pikler/Loczy Fund USA, of which she was the president, supporting the Pikler Institute in Budapest, Hungary, to improve children's homes and orphanages worldwide.
In Tulsa, while continuing to run Day Schools, she coordinated Piklerian training seminars and was the co-chairwoman of the International Infant Toddler Conference.
Most recently, she spoke at a conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
She also recently edited and published the book "Being With Infants & Toddlers."
"Laura's commitment to improving children's quality of life, and her tireless dedication to her mission of creating peace in the world one baby at a time, will live on," Pikler/Loczy USA officials said in a statement, adding that they are creating an endowment in her memory.
"She really felt like she was making a difference," her brother said. "It's impossible to know how many lives she's changed. I'm only now beginning to grasp that."
Survivors include her husband of 10 years, Bob Briley; her mother, Mary Jane Heidinger; a stepson, Cory Briley; a brother, Craig Heidinger; and two grandchildren.
Tim Stanley 918-581-8385
tim.stanley@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Tulsa woman took mission of saving children to heart
Our Lives
Situated atop the tallest hill in the area and rising 60 feet off the ground, Oma McCuistion's lookout post could be reached only by a zig-zagging set of stairs.
No disrespect intended to actors and directors, but William Froug was firm in his opinion about who was most important in the filmmaking process.
