By Tara Allen
Crisis Nursery is a great little gem currently located at 1309 W. Hill Street in Urbana. I have been aware of the facility for years and enjoyed participating in the Nursery’s “Unwrap a Smile” program in the past.
This program pairs donors with families in need during the holidays. Who doesn’t love a charitable organization that revolves around little kids? So it was at the forefront of my mind when the holiday season came around. Throughout December, my little playgroup collected donations for Crisis Nursery. We were invited to tour the facility when we made our donation drop-off in January.
On that morning we were welcomed by Angie Marker, Director of Development and Communications for Crisis Nursery. Our playgroup currently consists of tots, aged two and under, so we easily fit into a meeting room in the back of the facility.
“Crisis Nursery is the only emergency-based child care facility open 24 hours, 365 days a year for the entire community to access with no fees or income eligibility. Besides safe shelter for children, ages birth through six, we also provide family support and parenting education to strengthen parenting skills and confidence” (Crisis Nursery Newsletter Nov. 2016).
Angie had set out toys that are on hand for several groups that meet in the room throughout the week. These groups are open to the public, free of charge and include support groups, parent-child interaction groups and parenting education classes. While our kiddos played, Angie gave us some history and information regarding Crisis Nursery.
The facility, which was newly renovated and expanded this past year, sits behind Presence Covenant Medical Center on a piece of land donated by the hospital. PCMC supplies daily meals for the children receiving care and shelter at the Nursery.
Cafeteria food is…cafeteria food so the Nursery continues to rely upon donations of single serving snacks and toddler foods. Another way PCMC continues to lend a hand is in the cleaning and transporting of the nursery’s linens.
Our tour included views of the kitchen area, bedrooms and massive play area which includes several indoor play structures. Since we were there on a cold day in January, we were only able to glimpse the outdoor playground from the window.
Even at a distance, it was impressive and included play structures, a garden cared for by Master Gardeners from the U of I Extension and a butterfly garden with a reading corner.
Crisis Nursery is a nonprofit supported by community donations. The cost to run the nursery for a single 24-hour period is $1,800. If you are interested in making a donation of goods, you can do so in a ton of different ways. The easiest of which is their Amazon Wishlist.
It is also easy to see their list of “Immediate Needs” on the Crisis Nursery website.
During our visit, Angie stated that the biggest need is Enfamil formula and diapers in sizes 4 and 5.
If you are interested in touring Crisis Nursery or learning more about its services, please contact Angie Hatfield Marker at 217-337-2731.
Tara is a creator of Mahomet Tots playgroup, RN on hiatus, and deliriously happy SAHM who enjoys photography, reading, play dates and adult conversation.