OROVILLE — There were a lot of smiling parents and laughing children at the grand opening of the First 5 Family Resource Center at Lakeside on Friday morning.
The center, which has been “softly open” since March, offers support to families who are expecting a child or already have children 5-years-old and younger, said Jaymee Sifers, site supervisor.
The Oroville center is funded by Proposition 10 tobacco tax dollars through First 5 Butte County Children and Families Commission and operated by Northern Valley Catholic Social Services. It provides educational opportunities, socialization activities and access to additional resources to families.
Ashley Chirita, left, looks a book her daughter Nicoleta Chirita, 2, hands her while baby sister, Persidia Charita, 10 months, crawls toward some plush toys as Owen Collins, 9 months, and his mom Lily Collins look on during the grand opening of First 5 at Lakeside Family Resource Center on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024 in Oroville, California. (Kyra Gottesman/Mercury-Register)
“We offer families a lot of different activities and classes including play groups, preschool story times, craft activities and kindergarten-readiness, positive discipline and healthy relationship classes as well as support groups,” said Sifers. “All programs and services are free to all interested families, caregivers and friends that play a role in a child’s life.”
The center, located at the Lakeside Market shopping center on Olive Highway, is a multi-room suite that used to house the NVCSS wildfire resource center. With an established location in place that is familiar to many families in east Oroville and the surrounding mountain communities including Berry Creek and Feather Falls it was the “natural place” to open the family center.
“We’ve been in a few time since it opened,” said Lilly Collins, who was there with her 9-month-old son. “It’s a fun place to bring Owen to play and to be with other kids. It’s right down the road from my house so it’s super easy.”
The center includes a cleanly decorated and comfortably furnished entry room where parents and caregivers can talk, grab a cup of coffee and use a computer and printer. The welcome room is flanked by two additional room including a large playroom and a spacious food pantry with an adjoining restroom.
The large play room is filled with child-size furniture, toys and books and it was busy with little ones exploring, playing with toys and stuffed animals and looking at books during the Friday’s event.
Mailia Chronister heard about the grand opening on Facebook and decided to check it out, bringing her 15-month-old daughter Lilian Cook and neighbor Melissa Graves with her.
“I wanted to see what it was like,” said Chronister. “I’m a new mom and looking for socialization opportunities for my daughter and myself.”
Ashley Chirita, the mother of two girls, Nicoleta, 2, and Persidia, 10 months, said she has visited the center a couple times a week since it opened.
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“It’s always really clean which is great,” said Chirita. “And, I like the developmental surveys they do so I can see that my girls are hitting their milestones. I also like the imaginative play they get to do.”
Friday also marked the grand opening of two other First 5 centers in Gridley and Chico. The First 5 Center at the Esperanza House in Gridley is open to any family with young children. The First 5 Center at the Renewal House in Chico is only open to families that are current or former participants of the Renewal Center. First 5 is also making plans to open a center in Magalia.
“Since we opened the Lakeside center in March, we’ve provided service to 28 unduplicated caregivers, many of whom have been in more than one time,” said Sifers. “Our goal is to serve at least 300 between all three currently open sites.”
For more information on First 5 Centers’ programing, services and hours visit https://first5butte.org/family-center.
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