EASTER SEALS MOVES INTO NEW DAY-CARE CENTER

One hundred youngsters, some with special needs, some without, are attending classes at the new Easter Seals Early Learning Center, 1912 Broadway.

The last pieces of furniture moved Monday to the renovated building, said Amy Kinder, director of development for Easter Seals.

Easter Seals is integrating about a dozen handicapped children into the regular classrooms at the day-care center on Broadway.

The center combines child care and early childhood education. The Easter Seals center has been providing care for children with special needs for 10 years. With the expansion, those services are available to all children.

Enrollment is available for children ages 6 weeks to 8 years.

Easter Seals bought the Early Childhood Center, a day-care operation at 1912 Broadway, in January and had operated the traditional center until last week when the two centers joined together.

The new center is one of only about 45 such integrated Easter Seals day-care operations across the country. It also will handle home-based services for special-needs children.

Easter Seals is closing its facility at 316 S. Plaza Way. The building is for sale.

The operation should be in full swing within three years. The goal is to serve a mix of children, with 25 percent having special needs.

As part of the renovations, the Broadway building got newly designed classrooms, new lighting, a computer lab, and the playground was revamped.

While classes are under way, Kinder said additional money is needed to pay off the building and renovation work.

The building and remodeling cost a little over $525,000. Easter Seals has raised $225,000.

"We have about $300,000 left to raise," Kinder said.

A fund-raising campaign to generate the money is set to kick off on Nov. 6, at the end of the Area Wide United Way campaign.

"We're in the quiet phase right now," Kinder said. "We're looking for some lead gifts."

The campaign will be called "Building for Great Futures." Kinder expects it to last 18 months.

"We have raised over a third of the money," Kinder said. "We know can do it. There are a lot of really generous people out there."