Sisters Linda Vala and Wanda Corn, both Springfield residents, made a $125,000 gift to sponsor all five infant rooms in memory of their brother.
“Supporting Memorial Child Care seemed like a perfect way to remember our brother and help ensure infants in our community receive the highest-quality care,” said Wanda Corn. “Memorial Child Care provides a nurturing, loving environment for children, and this new facility is an ideal setting for play and learning.”
Memorial Child Care provides day care to the children of Memorial Health employees on the organization’s Springfield campus. The state-of-the-art building on Miller Street, which opened its doors in June, is more than double the square footage of the previous Memorial Child Care facility and will allow Memorial to accommodate more children. The project also included new playgrounds and space for social and emotional learning activities.
“This project is about much more than bricks and mortar,” said Melissa Hansen Schmadeke, executive director of the Springfield Memorial Foundation. “We want our colleagues to have the peace of mind that their children are receiving the best care possible while they are at work caring for our community. We are so grateful to the donors who made this project possible, including Linda and Wanda.”
Linda Vala and her husband Frank also made an additional gift to support construction of the facility. Other major donors were John and Shawn Faloon, the Levi family, the Pecori family, Charles and Melissa Schmadeke, Rob and Dr. Julie Pietroburgo and O’Shea Builders.