New director takes over at family center

Several years ago, Michelle Wallace drove by the Cape Girardeau Family Resource Center and saw a building in shambles. No cars were in the lot. She couldn't tell which door was the entrance. Wallace wondered how the center operated.

As a young parent coordinator at the New Madrid County Family Resource Center, she was used to seeing such centers bustling with people.

The Cape Girardeau center has come a long way since then, she said, in large part to the vision of former director Denise Lincoln.

This month, Wallace took the reins from Lincoln, who is leaving the post to travel with her husband.

"I have huge shoes to fill. It makes me nervous thinking 'Can I live up to this?'" Wallace said. "With the community's help, Denise has built this from the ground up."

Beginning Aug. 15, Wallace jumped into the position. In addition to preparing for children to flood their doors beginning Sept. 8, she is prepping for a date that has loomed over the center's staff since February -- a building inspection.

Staff learned this winter they need a license to operate their free after-school program, which serves mainly low-income students from South Cape. An initial inspection found about 25 major problems that board members estimated would cost up to $60,000 to fix.

"The laundry list seemed insurmountable, but the whole city has been so gracious," said Eldon Nattier, who resigned his position on the board to become project manager.

Furnaces still need to be fire-encapsulated and exit windows need to be installed, but other big-ticket repairs are complete. The inspection will take place at some point next month.

Repairs are coming in considerably under budget because of the work of volunteers, but the center has had to dip into its operating budget to complete them. A Sept. 14 fundraiser is meant to help cover repair costs.

The second annual Sock Hop will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. Sept. 14 at the Rose Bed Inn, where Nattier is innkeeper. The night will feature food from local restaurants, a silent auction, an art show, tours of the inn, and a poodle skirt and Fonzie look-alike contest. Tickets can be obtained by calling 334-8170 or 332-7673, and a donation of $20 a ticket is recommended.

Last year, the event and subsequent donations raised more than $10,000, which funded the replacement of windows at the center. The replacement has reigned in heating costs, and workers and students no longer have to wear coats inside during the winter.

"This is a good neighborhood, but it needs the hope of knowing there is a positive future, like any other neighborhood that has been neglected and let down. The center brings that hope," said Joy Rubi, an event coordinator for the Rose Bed Inn helping to organize the fundraiser.

"Raising the Roof" fundraiser will conclude the center's first week in operation since summer camp. The center's after-school program begins Sept. 8 and runs from 3:30 to 5:30 Monday through Thursday.

Applications for enrollment are currently being accepted. Parents or guardians must commit to attending three parent sessions called "Hot Topics."

"If we work with the kids, we have to work with the parents as well, because they're a whole unit," said Pat King, the center's after-school director.

Wallace worked beside Lincoln for part of summer camp to understand the workings of the center. Her main goal will be to continue bringing in outside resources to broaden students' horizons. She'd also like to look into extending the center's hours.

Unemployed for about six months before accepting the position, Wallace said she couldn't understand why she wasn't getting offers. Now she believes it is because her position at the center was "meant to be."

Wallace has varied experience within the social services sector. She ran a day care for 12 years, worked at the Family Resource Center in New Madrid County, served as a family resource aid for the Delta Area Economic Opportunity Corporation and worked at the East Missouri Action Agency.

"When they started detailing the job, my eyes just lit up," she said.

James Coley, a chef at the Rose Bed Inn helping to organize the fundraiser, said the center provides an indispensable service.

"We all have a concept of how it should be and how it is, and they don't always match. We work toward what is idealized because it can be. I am seeing glimmers of it already," he said.

lbavolek@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

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