Parents such as Jerry Ryan and Gail Guentzel hate to think what they would do if the Summit Preschool & Childcare Center in Rifle closed down.

“If I don’t have child care, I can’t work. I can’t pay my mortgage, and I can’t live here anymore,” said Guentzel, whose 7-year-old daughter goes to the center.

Ryan said he would have to move if the center fails to find a new home this year so it can remain open. With the shortage of day care in Garfield County, he said there would be no way to find another place open during the hours he needs that could take his three daughters and provide all the schooling, activities and other services the center’s staff offers.

“They’re more than just important. They are vital to the survival of my family,” Ryan said.

The nonprofit center’s own survival is in doubt unless significant funds can be raised in a matter of weeks, says its administrator, Lori Wagner.

“We’re in a tight spot,” she said.

The center, which serves 155 children, has known for some time it would be losing the lease Oct. 31. Back in 2006, Wagner began working on obtaining financial assistance from a U.S. Department of Agriculture rural development program.

At one point the center had hoped to build a new facility, but that fell through. Now, Wagner said, it has a contract to buy the old Griffiths Centers for Children building on County Road 294 for $2.5 million. But in talking to banks, Wagner learned they wanted a down payment of $250,000 to $500,000, despite the fact the USDA has agreed to co-sign a loan amount of $3 million, guaranteeing the loan’s repayment if the center defaults.

“We’re in a tight spot,” Wagner said.

The center has begun a “Kids Rock” campaign in hopes that donors will step forward to help it come up with the down payment by the Aug. 1 closing date for buying the property. If it loses the contract, it will close, Wagner said.

If it can buy the building, it can almost double the number of children it serves.

The center’s possible shutdown could have repercussions for the region’s workforce.

Wagner has heard from other parents who say they will have to move if the center shuts down. Guentzel said the shortage of day care makes it critical for the community to step up and support Summit in its efforts to survive. She said she has donated $1,000.

“If they shut it down, where are 155 children going to go? It’s just really, really serious,” she said.

She has contacted U.S. Sens. Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar, both from Colorado, and a Salazar staff member responded with some suggestions on where to seek grants.

Wagner has sought help from the energy industry, which is helping drive growth in western Garfield County and increasing the demand for child care. Earlier this year, EnCana Oil & Gas (USA) contributed $35,000 to the center’s relocation effort.

When the Parachute area was facing the closure of a day care center earlier this year, Garfield County was able to contribute $100,000 in operational funds toward a successful effort to open a new center.

Lynn Renick, the county’s human services director, said the county could do the same for Summit, but the federal child care funding reserves that are available to the county can’t be used for capital costs such as buying real estate.

Renick said that because of the number of children Summit serves and the severity of the county’s day care crisis, if it shut down, it would be “a big loss.”

Ryan said he knows the community will step up and help out, but he worries whether there’s enough time for the center to raise the money needed.

“I can only hope and pray that they can do it,” he said.

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E-mail Dennis Webb at dwebb@gjds.com.

Parachute day care 
crisis averted
Earlier this year, the Parachute/Battlement Mesa area responded when faced with the shutdown of the major child care provider there.
The Garfield County School District 16 center closed May 30. However, organizers, including Parachute Mayor Roy McClung and his wife, Carol, managed to round up funding to open the Kids Promise day care center, which is serving between 30 and 40 children. Garfield County contributed $100,000 to the undertaking, Williams Production RMT donated about $12,000, the McClungs pitched in about $8,000, and Roy and Joan Savage each gave $2,000.
How to help
Anyone wishing to contribute to Summit Preschool & Childcare’s fundraising campaign may contact center administrator Lori Wagner at 970-625-2860.