The Cupertino Courier
News
Company picks up, delivers children
By Cody Kraatz
Their boss is breathing down their neck. They have a schedule packed with meetings and business trips. Their child just finished school, and it's only 2:30 p.m.
As Silicon Valley working parents consider how to juggle work and family life, they often ask themselves, "What is my time worth?"
Some parents say they are grateful to have found their answer in Kids Kab, a service that shuttles their loved ones wherever in town they need to go--safely and on time.
"In my case it's a little bit unique. I'm a divorced parent, so sometimes my daughter has to be dropped off at my place and sometimes at her mom's place," said Nari Ramarapu, president and CEO of Wintec Software Corp. in Santa Clara.
Kids Kab has dropped his 9-year-old daughter at his workplace, where a sign-in sheet in the lobby confirms that she arrived safely, Ramarapu said. She has been a Kids Kab client since she was 6.
"It was perfect in that sense. They've been very reliable. I think they're always on time," said Ramarapu, who finds the price definitely a good value for the peace of mind of knowing his daughter is safe and where she needs to be.
"In my case it's worth it because if I had to take off work and go, that time I'm away from work is worth more than $14," he said.
"A lot of our parents are doctors, lawyers, CEOs and CFOs, and some of them are just regular working parents," said Kids Kab owner Liz Marino-Morris.
Parents such as Ellen Bicht, who starts work at 6 a.m. at Stanford, find Kids Kab very helpful in the mornings, when Marino-Morris said drivers sometimes take kids to breakfast and then school.
"If I have to work till 5:30 and she has soccer practice at 4, there's no way to get her there," said Bicht, whose daughter goes to Hyde Middle School. Knowing her daughter is safe is another big plus for Bicht, who lives in San Jose and is a parent in the Cupertino Union School District.
"When she was younger they would walk her to the door. They would make sure another adult was there," said Bicht. "Basically, I don't have to worry about it."
"A taxi driver would drive up, honk, and if no one came out, they'd take off," said Marino-Morris. "My drivers are all background-checked, drug-tested, carry first aid and are CPR-certified, and I hire drivers that are good with kids."
With daughters aged 2 and 4, West San Jose resident Lekha Dasgupta said she doesn't know how working parents manage without Kids Kab. She lives near Quito Road, right on the border with Saratoga, and works at the Mountain View-based software firm Synopsys Inc.
Her older daughter will start kindergarten near home, while her younger will still go to preschool at Rainbow Montessori in Sunnyvale, near her mom's workplace.
Her daughters ride from school to their nanny with Kids Kab every day and talk enthusiastically about their drivers, Dasgupta said.
"I know all their drivers personally," said Dasgupta. "The kids love them."
When Marino-Morris bought the company in 2002, there were three vans and the company was operated out of founder Coreen Fujinami's home in Saratoga. Now, there are 10 vans, about 300 kid clients and an office on De Anza Boulevard.
When Marino-Morris was interested in buying a small business, she had a choice between a bookstore and Kids Kab. She went with Kids Kab because she loves children, she said.
"When people ask me if I have kids, I say, 'Yeah, 300 of them!' " said Marino-Morris, who used to volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters and was on the board of directors at a Boys and Girls Club.
Marino-Morris came from Albuquerque, N.M., in 1988, lived and worked in high tech in Sunnyvale for 10 years, and now commutes from her home in Milpitas. She and her husband also own Stanford Driving School in Palo Alto.
In March, the Fine Living Channel will feature Kids Kab in an episode of its new series What's Your Time Worth? It was taped in August in Berkeley, starring the child of one of the show's producers, Marino-Morris said.
Besides picking up kids for busy parents, another big chunk of Kids Kab's business is group transportation contracts with Kehilla Jewish High School in Palo Alto, the private Stratford Schools in the South Bay and Morning Star Chinese School in Santa Clara.
In the morning, parents bring their children to a designated meeting spot, where the van loads up the youngsters from that area who are going to one of the private schools. They don't often pick up children at homes.
The vans are also busy in the early afternoon picking up children from many local schools and taking them to after-school programs or day care.
Ride costs vary. If a child rides three or fewer times per week, each ride costs $18. For four rides per week, each costs $16. For five or more rides per week, each costs $14. For siblings riding together, at the same time and location, the fee is $11 per ride, and the hourly group rate is $70.
The drivers use a radio dispatch system to communicate with the main office.
For more information or to download an application, visit Kids Kab's website at kids-kab.com, email kidskab@sbcglobal.net, or call 408.342.0100.
