“This has to be the most excited group I’ve ever seen at a groundbreaking!” remarked Bill Daniel, chairman of the Savannah Christian Preparatory School Board of Trustees.
The morning sun danced through the trees as more than 140 children swarmed onto the turf of the Raider’s historic football practice field in preparation for the long-awaited ground-breaking of a new 27,000 square foot Daycare/Preschool facility that will soon occupy the site.
Preschoolers in bright yellow plastic hard hats filled the risers and preferred seating arranged near the end zone. Surrounded by toddlers in buggies, infants in strollers and cribs, school leaders, family and friends, and project leaders, the children moved many to tears with their cheerful singing and exclamations of joy.
“If this doesn’t light your fire, then your wood is wet!” exclaimed Headmaster Roger Yancey, who himself donned a little yellow hat given to him by one of the children who noticed that he did not have one yet.
Fifteen representative students joined Ruth Rushing, current Daycare/Preschool Director and Ann Womble Hudson, founding and retired Director, to officially break ground on the $3.5 million facility.
Project representatives from Cogdell & Mendralla, architects, and Artley Company, contractor also enjoyed the occasion.
Within a few hours, R. B. Baker Company employees were already at work preparing the site. Projected for completion in early 2008, the new, larger facility will replace four current buildings and offer expanded programs, as well as more opportunities for new families to reap the benefits of this exceptional child care center.
Other concurrently scheduled new site work includes site preparation for four new eventual middle school fields and a 3,500 linear foot road extension to complete a loop road encircling much of the campus.
This groundbreaking signifies the next major step in redeveloping Savannah Christian’s existing 234-acre Chatham Parkway campus. Referred to as the “One Campus Plan” by school administrators, objectives of the redevelopment include consolidating all students and programs on the Chatham Parkway campus; growing the student population; strengthening the school’s academic, arts and athletic programs; and eventually closing the 14-acre DeRenne Avenue campus that currently houses Middle School grades 6-8 and one class each of Lower School grades K-5.
Visit Campus Redevelopment projects for more information.
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