Families filled community's child care gap

“My favorite thing is lots of things. I like everything here,” said Starr, a 3-year-old girl at the Winchester Learning Center. “I like coloring and painting. I know how to spell my name now.”

The Winchester Learning Center is a “grassroots miracle,” declares Executive Director Penny Vaine, who appreciates the feedback from her young charges.

With donated space in the basement of the United Church of Winchester, a $30,000 loan from the Community Loan Fund for renovations and start-up expenses, and individual support, the facility is an early-learning success story.

In 1996, a small group of families wanted to fill the gap in quality child care in their southwest New Hampshire town. At the time, there were only three licensed home care providers and no child care centers in the area, leaving many working families out in the cold.

Determined, the group stuck with it … for five years.

“This group faced numerous challenges. From scratch, they had to establish the nonprofit child care organization, build an effective board of directors, write a business plan, find the right place for children and raise money in one of the most stressed areas of New Hampshire – an area in which 20 percent of children live in poverty,” said Julie McConnell, director of the Community Loan Fund’s Child Care Facilities program.

“The community of Winchester was engaged!”

By 2001, the doors of the Winchester Learning Center opened. The brightly painted walls, new cabinets, and bathroom were the most recognizable changes, although less obvious were insulation, wiring and plumbing upgrades. Within a few years, 37 children, ranging in age from 2 to 5 years, attended the facility, with a dozen more on a waiting list. The center employed six people.

“This is a good example of how a small amount of money can make a huge amount of difference,” said Julie.

This story was published in the Community Loan Fund's 2002 Annual Report.