April Newsletter 2024
Teri Ann Cox
Executive Director of The Children’s Center
Dear Center Families,
Spring really is here (although that last week of March did take the wind out of some of our sails)! We are excited to celebrate nature’s promise of fresh, new things to come. And speaking of celebrating, there are three things I’d like to share:
- The extraordinary celestial event – a total solar eclipse – will occur on Monday, April 8. This event is significant as it will be the only solar eclipse visible from our region in the next 20 years. According to the “Total Eclipse Overview” on the NASA website, the full eclipse as seen from Wolfeboro will occur at 3:29 pm. For our school age kids, teachers at Carpenter and Crescent Lake will be integrating eclipse-related lessons across the grade levels. Safety glasses will be distributed to them on the morning of April 8. It is essential that we stress the importance of safety when viewing the event. Please make yourself and your child aware of the instructions for viewing the eclipse safely. Information can be found at https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/safety/ Remember, regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the Sun.
- Monday, April 22 is Earth Day (which has been observed every year since 1970). While our planet only gets one official recognition day a year, where billions of individuals from more than 190 countries worldwide come together and act, we know how important it is to care for and tend for it every day. If you are looking for ways to celebrate Earth Day with your kids this year, Earthday.org is a great resource. Their theme, “Planet vs. Plastics,” advocates for widespread awareness on the health risk of plastics and a reduction of 60% in all plastics production by 2040. Check out how you can reduce your single use of plastics with the “plastic calculator” at https://www.earthday.org/plastic-pollution-calculator-2/
- April also marks the month the Wolfeboro Area Children’s Center was founded 50 years ago! Thanks to founder Edie Desmarais and her supporters, the organization was incorporated in 1974, and after planning, staffing, and licensing, we opened our doors in September at the American Legion Hall to support the child care needs of many in the Wolfeboro area. A year later, we renovated and moved to a new home in South Wolfeboro, thanks to the efforts of local volunteers. Then about ten years later, we ended up at 180 S. Main Street, and in 1994, expanded construction included an addition that provided the space needed for the school age program and growing preschool population. To learn more about our history, please go to https://www.thechildrenscenternh.org/our-history. We will be working on updating this section as the year progresses and we celebrate half a century of caring and enhancing the well-being of families in the community. Stay tuned - we have a lot planned for our 50th anniversary!
Happy Spring!
Teri Ann
