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Donation allows YMCA to offer all-day child care in South Lane School District

Register-Guard - 10/16/2020

The Eugene Family YMCA is able to offer its all-day child care in Cottage Grove, thanks to a $27,000 gift, as it continues to provide expanded services through the pandemic.

The YMCA is the largest child care provider in Lane County, with programs coordinated in six locations in the communities of Eugene, Bethel and Cottage Grove.

In a normal year, these would just be after-school programs. But when the pandemic hit in March and schools closed, the demand for child care for working parents rose. So to meet that need, the Y transitioned its after-school program an all-day program from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at six locations.

More: Eugene YMCA offers place for kids during school and memberships to those who lost homes to wildfires

"We went from operating a three-hour program to operating a 10-hour program," said Holly Kriz-Anderson, vice president of operations and youth development director. "The main difference is probably six hours of that is supporting the comprehensive distance learning."

This meant increased costs for staff time and supplies.

The YMCA announced Monday it received two gifts totaling $27,000 to go specifically toward the all-day program for South Lane School District students in Cottage Grove. The Ford Family Foundation donated $25,000 and the Pacific Power Foundation donated $2,000.

The all-day program for South Lane students is being hosted at Latham Elementary School, which permanently closed its doors at the end of 2019. There are about 11 students participating, with more openings available.

"About a year and a half ago, the school district started conversations with us about coming to the area to provide services for those families," said Danielle Uhlhorn, YMCA chief development officer. "One of the challenges of moving into a new area is it takes time to develop those programs … . Enrollment typically does not cover the cost."

The cost for the new all-day program is $725 a month for YMCA members and $735 a month for nonmembers, up from about $300 a month for after-school services.

Kriz-Anderson said the YMCA knows cost can be an issue for families, so these gifts will also help go toward financial assistance to South Lane families who express that need.

People looking to find out more can visit eugeneymca.org/youth or call 541-686-9622.

Contact reporter Jordyn Brown at jbrown@registerguard.com or 541-338-2203, and follow her on Twitter @thejordynbrown and Instagram @registerguard.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Donation allows YMCA to offer all-day child care in South Lane School District

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