Palm Coast Community Church opens preschool

Palm Coast Observer
Neighbors

Palm Coast Community Child Center will begin classes for children six weeks through 4 years old beginning Monday, Sept. 24. The center, which is open for enrollment now, is an extension of Palm Coast Community Church, PC3.

The preschool, which is using this year as a soft opening, is the brainchild of Mary Benvenuto, Julie Hyatt, Julie Davis and Stacy Lemmon.

“A long time ago, when (the church) first moved into the building, we thought it would be a great place to have childcare/preschool,” Benvenuto said. “We ran down that road a couple times and didn’t have the right vision, passion, or right people for it.”

Now, those three things have come together, and the group hopes to bring something different to Flagler County childcare.

“It’s not just about educating kids, we want to care for the families as well,” Benvenuto said.

The plan is to make the school an extended family for the families of the children who attend. There is a plan to offer parenting classes, childcare for parent date night and family gatherings.

To encourage families to connect with other families, they are also transforming the front lobby into a coffee bar area.

“We’re operating on a team approach.” Benvenuto said. “We all have different strengths and roles, but we are a leadership team that makes the decisions together.”

As the school grows in enrollment, more teachers will be hired to keep classroom ratios low. Next year, the school plans to offer VPK.

The school is located at 1 Pine Lakes Parkway N. For more information, call 986-1876 or email [email protected].