FORTY FORT, Pa. — A maroon satin ribbon was cut to celebrate the opening of the Charlotte L. Casterline, M.D. YMCA Early Learning Center in Forty Fort...
A place where families can bring their children for daytime or before and after school care, all thanks to the donation of a building by the center's namesake.
"This is like the community it's inside of a neighborhood, it's an older building, it looks like the home so it has a family setting to it. We're going to try to do some traditional evening hours and weekend hours here that we wouldn't have had at the y can't do other places," said Jim Thomas, the CEO of the Greater Wyoming Valey Area YMCA.
Folks with childcare at the Y tell Newswatch 16 a donation like this is extremely helpful, because of a growing need for childcare due to the pandemic.
Senior Childcare Director, Jennifer Brennan, says "our Wilkes Barre center over at the Y serves about 220 children and we are waitlisted. We've merged since with the greater Pittston who is also waitlisted. So coming back out of, hopefully, this pandemic we're seeing a need for childcare for people to get back to work. This building and the donation has allowed us to now serve 30 additional children."
Brennan says she sees firsthand the need because of the social toll the pandemic has on some children.
"Yes, so I feel like with our toddler program we're starting to see that a little bit, social interaction is so important and it's prevalent in the kiddos that we're getting in that have never interacted with other adults," said Brennan.
This center is at 90% capacity now, but if you'd like more information on care here, click here.