Child Care opens house with grand opening
Child Care of Southwest Florida, Inc., officially opened its new larger office space in South Fort Myers on June 10 with a ribbon-cutting and grand opening celebration.
Lee County Commissioner Ray Judah, Lee County Manager Karen Hawes, Lee County United Way President Cliff Smith, and Steve Tirey, president of the Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Florida were among the dignitaries to attend the open house. The new quarters are located at 6831 Palisades Park Court, Suite 6, in the International Center near Hammond Stadium (Lee County Sports Complex).
Beach resident Jessica Anderson is a member of the Child Care of Southwest Florida Board of Directors.
“In our new headquarters, we have brought all administrative functions and training facilities under one roof, which will produce a much more efficient operation. And with leases being available at historic lows, we were able to actually get more space for less money than what we were spending previously,” said Beth Lobdell, CEO of Child Care of Southwest Florida.
The new space, consisting of 5,400 square feet, includes a Professional Development Center for child care professionals to receive training required by the State of Florida to work in family child care homes and child care centers. The non-profit organization provided state mandated training for 3,760 individuals last year.
In addition to administrative functions, the headquarters also houses the USDA Food Program, which reimburses participating family child care homes and child care centers for the cost of meals and snacks offered to children in their care. Last year, 67 child care centers and 175 family child care homes in 10 counties participated in the program, which is administered by Child Care of Southwest Florida under a contract with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services.
Child Care of Southwest Florida, Inc., also provides high quality child care for 700 children from infancy through age 12 at six centers throughout Lee and Hendry counties.
For more information, call 278-1002 or visit www.ccswfl.org.
-submitted by Susan Bennett