Nick Spinelli
Fort Gordon Public Affairs
FORT GORDON, Ga., -- (July 11, 2011) The Fort Gordon Child, Youth, School and Services Child Development Center East officially opened its doors Monday with a ribbon cutting ceremony outside the new facility.
The center, located on East Hospital Road near Dwight D. Eisenhower Medical Center, is the first of three planned facilities scheduled to open on post in the coming months.
We have a little pun here that we like to use,” Marie Benjamin, lead administrator for the CDC East said. “We are east-static about this opening!”
Kathleen Duncan, Fort Gordon’s Parent and Outreach Services director, said the center has capacity for 144 children and that enrollment is based on need.
“We have monthly, weekly, daily, and even hourly programs. So, even if a parent doesn’t usually utilize the CYSS but for instance has a medical appointment one day, they can call and set up a drop off and pick up time for just an hour or two,” she said.
The new center boasts eight classrooms, a playground and an activity center. The facility also includes a state-of-the-art kitchen designed to provide children with “nutritious USDA approved meals.”
The new facility will also host “Strong Beginnings,” a morning and afternoon pre-school part day program. It focuses on social, emotional and physical development. The goal of the program is to equip children with the basic skills necessary to enter kindergarten.
During her remarks at the grand opening ceremony, Facility Manager Diane Steel stressed how the building, staff, and security have all been set to the highest standards.
“We truly believe the strength of our military comes from the strength of our Families,” she said.
“This institution is secure, accredited and designed to ensure the safety and well being of our children.”
Ensuring those high standards resulted in the project taking longer to complete than initially thought. Those involved, however, believe that the quality of the CDC East, as well as the quality of the remaining satellite centers scheduled to open, more than make up for the construction time.
“It took a lot of work, by a lot of good people, and it was well worth the wait,” Col. Glenn Kennedy, Fort Gordon garrison commander, said.
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