Critchlow Adkins Children's Centers' mission is to provide quality, financially accessible childcare for children and their families in a nurturing, diverse, safe, and enriching environment. | | |
Thank you for a Spectacular Summer! | Thanks to you, our campers finished the summer with tons of amazing memories. They became chefs, astronauts, explorers, scientists, pirates, artists, and so much more. As our Critchlow Adkins kids head back to school this week, we hope you will take a moment to watch the video below and see some final highlights from this spectacular summer, made possible by your support! | |
Look At What We've Been Up To! | | |
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On the Move!
The campers in Cordova spent the month traveling through our community on field trip adventures. Trips included Positive Strides Therapeutic Riding, Altitude Trampoline Park, Coco's Fun House, the Oxford Ferry, and the bowling alley. Thanks to you, our children had exciting experiences that will stay with them for a lifetime!
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A Splashing Good Time!
At our Easton Preschool Site, the hot August weather was the perfect opportunity to spend time in the water! From visiting the pool to splashing in the water tables and running through the sprinklers with their teachers, our water babies had waves of fun! They also learned about the ocean, creating beautiful jellyfish crafts and tasty underwater treats!
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End of Summer Paradise!
The last week of camp was Luau Week at our Easton School Age Site. Children explored the beautiful island of Hawaii, crafted surfboards, made flamingos and butterflies, and enjoyed sand cups and beach cupcakes! They also took advantage of the break in the weather to spend tons of time outside playing with friends!
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Future Engineers of America!
Our St. Michaels Site enjoyed a visit from Miss Amy and the Easton High School Interact Club. Students put on their engineering caps to create racetracks for hexbugs (miniature robots that look like bugs). They worked in teams to strategize how to guide their hexbugs to the finish line. Once the tracks were complete, they had a blast racing their bugs!
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Summer Send Off!
What summer would be complete without a summer carnival? Our White Marsh campers had tons of fun celebrating the end of camp with lots of games and cool prizes. They even got their very own airshow when a local crop dusting plane flew overhead... What a treat for our kids! Children capped off the week with a huge waterslide and ice cream from Amy's Cool Treats!
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Follow us on Facebook to get your Friday fix of cuteness with our Weekly Round Up! | |
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We were delighted to attend the groundbreaking for the Chapel District Elementary School renovation on Friday, August 23rd. As part of this renovation, we have been given the opportunity to expand our Cordova Site, which is located within the school.
When completed, Critchlow Adkins will have 3 permanent, dedicated classrooms, a Site Director's Office, and a teacher workroom. This crucial project will allow us to care for up to 30 more children in our before- and after-school and summer camp programs. This is a huge step forward in addressing our community's childcare availability crisis.
Thanks to a recent generous grant from the Rural Maryland Council, we have now raised approximately $1.6 million of our $2 million goal. We need your help to get us to the finish line!
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Click the button below to learn more about the Cordova expansion and how you can help! | | |
Two Fun Ways to Support Critchlow! | | |
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Conor's Project
Join us for the 7th Annual Conor's Project Sporting Clay Tournament and Crab Feast on Sunday, September 8th at Pintail Point! The tournament begins at 10 am, and the crab feast, which is open to the whole community, starts at noon. Proceeds from this wonderful event, hosted by Rennie Gay in memory of his grandson Conor, help provide free swimming lessons and enrichment programming for our summer campers!
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Critchlow Adkins Trivia Night
Q: How can you have lots of fun and show off your smarts while supporting Critchlow Adkins?
A: Trivia Night returns on Thursday, October 24th at the Tred Avon Yacht Club! Enjoy cocktails, dinner, our annual Fund-a-Need Auction, and of course, a rousing game of trivia featuring our new favorite round, "Are You Smarter Than A Critchlow Adkins Kid?" Invitations will be in your mailbox soon, or click the button below to reserve your seat today!
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In honor of the momentous occasion of the groundbreaking for our Cordova Site Expansion Project, this month we are thrilled to introduce you to our Cordova Site Director, Melissa Johnson! | | | |
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Melissa was born and raised in Cordova, and has lived there her entire life. As a child, she attended Chapel District Elementary, so it is very gratifying that she now works there! Melissa is the proud parent of two adult children, one of whom got married last year.
Melissa graduated with her Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education from Chesapeake College, and has been part of the Critchlow Adkins family for 18 years. She began as an aide, became a teacher, and was promoted to the role of Site Director in 2013.
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When asked what inspires her about working for Critchlow Adkins, Melissa explained that her children attended Critchlow, and, "to see how Critchlow has grown and has really fostered these children, both educationally and financially, and as a safe place for parents to take their kids and be comfortable leaving them - it has been tremendous."
Melissa also shared her immense excitement about the upcoming expansion of the site.
"Words can't explain," she said. "I have so many parents who call me and really need a spot [in our program], and it hurts me to my core to say that I don't have any space for them and that I can put them on the wait list."
The site's wait list currently holds more than 100 children, and it can often take 2-3 years before a space opens up to bring in a child from the wait list.
She concludes, "We are a close community - very tight knit, so [the expansion] is just going to be a great thing, and I cannot wait!"
Thank you for all you do for Critchlow Adkins and our community, Melissa! We are so excited to Build a Brighter Future at our Cordova Site!
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An August STEAM Project YOU Can Do At Home! | |
This month, the preschoolers at our White Marsh Site conducted an egg-cellent experiment during Science Week that you can do at home with just three items! All you need is an egg, a jar or glass, and some vinegar, and you can make an eggshell disappear! | | |
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What happens during this experiment? Eggshells are made from calcium carbonate, and vinegar contains acetic acid. When these two substances mix, the generate a reaction that creates water, calcium acetate, and carbon dioxide. This reaction makes the outside of your egg look and feel like a rubber bouncy ball!
Click the button below to access the full experiment from STEM Education Guide!
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As always, get as creative as you want, and have lots of fun learning together! Follow our Facebook and Instagram pages to see a new STEAM project every week on "STEAM Saturday!" | |
Critchlow Adkins children, their families, and our staff can now sign up for health and dental care, thanks to our partnership with Choptank Community Health. Click the button below to learn more. Qualifying participants can also register using the link below. | |
We are honored to have been nominated for Best Preschool and Best Child Care in the 2024 APG Best of the Best contest! Voting starts Monday, September 9th, so be on the lookout for information on how to support CACC. Thank you in advance for voting for us to win for a 5th year! | | |
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You bring so much color and joy to
our lives!
| *Artwork by a child at our Preschool Site | | |
Thanks to your support, Critchlow Adkins Kids see the world as a rainbow of possibilities! Consider establishing a monthly or quarterly recurring donation to Build Brighter (and more colorful) Futures all year round! | |
Support Critchlow Adkins While Shopping! | |
Connect your Harris Teeter VIC card to Critchlow Adkins via the Together in Education Program, and when you purchase the brands listed below, you help earn money to support our programs! | |
If you are a Weis Market customer, scan the bar code below at checkout to help Critchlow Adkins earn funds for supplies, programs, and more! | |
Thank You To Our Wonderful Community and Business Partners! | |
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Grant Partners
Bryan Brothers Foundation
Christmas in St. Michaels
Dock Street Foundation
Fullwood Foundation
Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development
Mid-Shore Community Foundation
Rural Maryland Council
St. John Foundation
Talbot Optimists
USDA Rural Development
Senator Chris Van Hollen
Van Strum Foundation
Women & Girls Fund of the Mid-Shore
Philip A Zaffere Foundation
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Academy Art Museum
Appleseed Books
Bay Hundred Youth Task Force
Boy Scouts of America
Candlelight Cove
Carepacks of Talbot County
Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Chesapeake College
Choptank Community Health
Eastern Shore Speech Therapy
Easton Volunteer Fire Department
Environmental Concern
Family Affair Farm
Girl Scouts of America
Healthy Talbot
Imagination Library of Talbot County
Judy Amdur Music
Judy Center Early Learning Hubs
Lion's Club
Maryland Zoo
Out of the Fire
Pickering Creek Audubon Center
Police, Fire, and EMS Departments
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Positive Strides Therapeutic Riding
Project Right Steps
Ready at Five
SOS Sink or Swim
Society of St. Vincent de Paul
St. Michaels Community Center
Talbot County:
Child Care Association
Free Library
Health Department
Infants and Toddlers
Oral Health Department
Parks and Recreation
Public Schools
Talbot Family Network
Talbot Interfaith Shelter
Talbot Thrive
Trident Air Craft
University of Maryland Extension
US Armed Forces
4-H Club
7-Eleven
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Critchlow Adkins is blessed to have incredible support from our local business community. It is our pleasure to introduce you to our CACC Stars!
*For more information on how YOU can become a CACC Star, click HERE or contact our Development Director, Liz Connelly, at lconnelly@cacckids.org.
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Bartlett Tree Service
Benson and Mangold
Carpenter Street Saloon
Chesapeake Building Components
Coventry Motor Works
DJ Shannon Keener
Freestyle Fabrication
George's Green Thumb
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Out Of The Fire
RLE LLC
Roto Rooter
Shore Sportsman
Talbot County Chamber of Commerce
What's Good, LLC
Windswept Clothiers
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Licensed Maryland Childcare Providers
Cordova - 45445
Easton Preschool - 31291
Easton School Age - 31294
St. Michaels - 31292
White Marsh - 53488
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