Thirteen families utilizing the Champaign County nursing home’s childcare center may be forced to find services elsewhere as the center faces possible closing.

Marcie Bowman of Urbana, one of the 13 families, may be forced to not only find a new childcare service for her two-year-old daughter Meghan Edwards but also a new job. Working at the daycare center for nine years, she has seen its benefits firsthand.

“It brings a smile to all of the residents’ faces,” Bowman said. “The majority of them don’t have family or young children around. So interacting with kids brings a little bit of joy back to life.”

Walking around the nursing home, making cards for the residents and playing games, the children interact with the residents every day, childcare center director Karen Foster said.

“You see the look on the residents’ face and they go from a sad face to smiling, and you know that the children are having a positive impact on their lives,” Foster said. “The children can elicit such positive emotions from the residents.”

Nursing home administrator Andrew Buffenbarger agrees that intergenerational programming has brought benefits.

“They have really developed a relationship that’s just unmistakable and it’s unbreakable,” Buffenbarger said.

Children also benefit from interacting with the elderly, Foster said.

“The children have a greater understanding of people with disabilities, people who are in wheelchairs and others who can’t talk,” Foster said.

Cammy Seguin, a University Extension program family life educator, said the children and elderly can learn from one another.

“Younger children, interacting with the elderly, get to know them and love them as human beings, which prevents them from developing ideas of ageism,” Seguin said. “The elderly don’t always get the touch, warmth, and nurturing, but with the children they do.”

Jessie Nash, ninety-year-old nursing home resident, has spent afternoons by her window watching the children on the playground.

“I love kids,” Nash said. “They throw us kisses and wave goodbye at us. I can’t figure out why they want to (close the center).”

Nash said she often spends time watching children play games in the dining area or makes balloons with them.

The daycare may be closing because of financial troubles that were brought to light during Buffenbarger’s presentation to the Champaign County Board’s finance committee in January.

“(The finance committee) noticed that the childcare center had a loss in excess of $100,000 for fiscal year 2005,” Buffenbarger said.

After what finance committee chair Brendan McGinty described as “three meetings of intense and thoughtful deliberation,” the committee voted 6-2 to recommend closing.

“The childcare facility’s quality care was well regarded, but our concern was that the fund balance, which was once $3 million, is now at zero,” McGinty said. “Being fiscally responsible for Champaign County and on behalf of the taxpayers, it was a painful decision that had to be made.”

The daycare center was not built to be profitable, Foster said.

“It was made to be a benefit of the employees of the nursing home and Champaign county government employees,” Foster said.

Finance committee member Steve O’Connor voted against closing the center.

“If we look at it from a purely dollars and cents stand point, it’s a no-brainer to close,” O’Connor said. “I think all things tie in socially. If we’re thinking about expanding the jail then we can sure have a daycare center too.”

Raising the rate for service to create revenue is not feasible, as the necessary increase would turn away customers, Buffenbarger said.

Balancing “thinking with your heart” and “thinking with your head,” county facilities committee chair Steve Beckett said it will be a difficult decision.

“I had hoped that we could give the new facility a chance,” Beckett said. “The space allocated for the daycare is just terrific for intergenerational contact.”

Though Beckett hopes to keep the center open, he does understand the financial concerns.

“We’re not in the business of making profits, we’re in the business of providing services, but when it comes to hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars, we need to be able to justify the expenditure,” Beckett said.

If the childcare center does not move to the new nursing home, opening later this spring, ideas of a profitable venture taking its place have been discussed.

Buffenbarger’s alternative use plan proposed utilizing the space for outpatient care, therapy center or a wellness center.

To allow board members more time, a final decision has been pushed back from the March 28 agenda. A study session on the matter has been scheduled for April 11. The final decision is scheduled for the April 20 Champaign County Board meeting agenda.