Youth Haven to close daycare center

Pam Moran’s voice breaks as she talks about finding her son another day-care center.

“I knew people cared about him and loved him. He’s been there almost two years,” she said of the Youth Haven Day Care Center in East Naples. “It’s an incredible shock. Having it close is unreal.”

Youth Haven officials recently told parents the doors will close Aug. 31, leaving more than 60 families without day care.

In a letter to parents, Youth Haven’s interim Executive Director C. Ronald McSwiney wrote that increasing costs and significant losses incurred year after year left the Board of Trustees with no choice but to downsize. So the child-care program will provide service only to the children living in Youth Haven’s emergency shelter.

“Our board and staff have spent months exploring all available restructuring options so as not to jeopardize the level of service provided,” McSwiney wrote. “In spite of these efforts, our research concluded that these actions would not substantially support the continuation of the program as it is currently structured.”

Moran said she is upset the decision was made without parental input.

“I understand there were financial issues, but I would personally agree to pay more to keep my child there,” she said, adding she pays $600 a month to have her 3-year-old in day care.

Photo by TRISTAN SPINSKI, Daily News

From left, Jackson Moran, Destin Filmore, Anthony Galdamez, Michael Josephat and Halmer Castro, all age 3, sing “wheels on the bus go round and round” before naptime Wednesday afternoon at Youth Haven Child Care Center in East Naples. Youth Haven is downsizing its day-care services Aug. 31 and will only provide child care for children who reside in the shelter. Program officials are working with Childcare of Southwest Florida to find alternatives for the children affected by the cuts.

Jamie Gregor, director of marketing for Youth Haven, said the 12 employees affected by the closing have been offered open positions on Youth Haven’s campus, and Youth Haven also is working to help place them elsewhere.

Parents have been referred to Child Care of Southwest Florida for help locating available slots that will accommodate their child-care needs.

The problem is there might not be enough spots for the children who need them.

“We’re in crisis mode here,” said Donna Philp, Collier services director for Child Care of Southwest Florida. “It’s a big problem. With Youth Haven closing and possibly two others, we need more child-care facilities. It’s a community issue that affects all of us whether we have children or not.”

Philp said many factors have contributed to the problem, including the high price of real estate and rapid growth in Collier County, the low pay for child-care workers and the expansion of the state’s voluntary prekindergarten program.

She said Child Care of Southwest Florida, which keeps all the information on day-care providers in Collier County, is working to place the children. She said the organization is also educating parents on what to look for in a day-care provider.

“Like any other business, we are experiencing growing pains,” she said.

Kelly Vega, a youth care worker at Youth Haven, said the center had more than 150 children on a waiting list to get into the center. She said the closing affects many in the community.

“It is very hard to find a good day-care center,” she said. “It has been very hard for our parents. They have come in crying. For me, I can find another job, no problem. But these families will struggle finding another place for their kids.”

There might not be a reason to panic, yet.

Gregor said the organization has been in contact with Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA) to perhaps take over the day-care portion of Youth Haven.

“They are a quality provider,” she said. “I can’t say much more than we are talking with them about taking over the center.”

Officials at RCMA in Immokalee couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.

Susan Hallinan said she would do anything to keep her child at Youth Haven.

“There is a lot of good stuff going on here,” she said. “I hope they change their mind. (The parents) want the teachers, they want the location. It’s not fair to punish the kids who like the teachers or punish the teachers who work so hard.”

Hallinan said she likes the center because it is quiet, clean and in a location off of a busy street, at 5867 Whitaker Road in East Naples.

But unless another provider commits to taking over, parents will have to look for another day-care center.

Moran said she is discouraged by the thought of having to find a new day-care center.

“I can tell it is going to be a long, hard summer trying to find a place that would meet my expectations,” she said. “It doesn’t seem like there is much out there.”