Friends of Catherwood Child Care, under the supervision of Parenting Resource Center, continue a renovation project that began at the home in 2017 with the Day of Caring and will extend into another, larger, period of “Caring” in 2018.

The child care, unique to the Austin community, provides bi-lingual providers and non-standard hours, as well as crisis services. The home is located on Fourth Street Northwest.

The daycare, licensed for 28 children over two shifts, is open from 5:15 a.m. until 1 a.m. Dawn Mueller is the program coordinator; each shift has two care providers.

Catherwood also provides crisis care, said PRC Director Gema Alvarado-Guerrero.

The home, which was built in the 1900s by Samuel Catherwood (best friend of Hormel Foods founder George Hormel and after who Jay Catherwood Hormel was named), got its first boost at renovation in 2017, when the United Way of Mower County named Catherwood its sole project for its annual Day of Caring.

At that time, said Alvarado-Guerrero, major emphasis fell on landscaping and painting, with some fixes and replacements of a leaking outdoor spigot, a broken window and insulating one wall.

“We also had a major cleanup and reorganization” of a storage area, she said.

About 100 volunteers came out to do the work, over a two-day period, Alvarado-Guerrero added.

“More than anything, it was this labor, these volunteers, who together put in 500 hours,” she said. “It was very humbling, to know that these people were so invested in the community, in this project.”

This year will have an even bigger impact on the home, which was the recipient of a $61,000 grant from the Minnesota Child Care Grant program in early January. The program, administered through the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, is designed to increase the supply of quality child care providers. Those funds, which will require a local match, will provide $121,000 in funding for 2018.

“I just couldn’t believe it was true, that we got the grant,” said Alvarado-Guerrero. That helps the PRC ramp up its on-going renovation efforts, which will be utilizing volunteers again this year through the United Way Day of Caring. A special “Caring” period will be held beginning this spring, she said, that will expand beyond the traditional weekend event.

That’s when some major work will get under way, she said. The work will include adding accessibility ramps, placing both front and back porches, replacing windows, replacing the front sidewalk, driveway and front turnaround, replacing the heating system, and paint the exterior of the house.

The home was also the recipient of a Lowe’s Heroes award, which includes everything from vinyl and tile flooring, carpet, lighting and a shower.

“The Lowe’s Hero award was valued at over $3,000,” Alvarado-Guerrero said, shaking her head. “It’s been a good year.”

Alvarado-Guerrero said the home, built in 1900, was “in really good shape. These are things we have wanted to do for a long time but just couldn’t.”

She added the renovation, and the addition of accessibility, will also allow the home to expand the number of children being served. At some point in the future, staff would like to add a third shift.

“I really believe that Catherwood has so much potential and meets a community need,” she said.

She said the PRC was grateful to all who helped with the grant process which came as  a result of collaboration between the PRC and the Habitat for Humanity, city of Austin, Austin Public Schools, Hormel Foundation, United Way of Mower County and the Austin Housing and Redevelopment Authority.