Covina Development Center

Fully inclusive early care and education preschool with early interevention component.Non profit, non sectarian. Please see website.

Mission Statement

Covina Development Center is a non-profit, non-sectarian pre-school program that provides Early care and Education Preschool Programs and Early Intervention services for children with and without special needs and subsidized childcare to low income families. The programs are provided in an enriched nurturing educational environment that is designed to meet the individual needs of each child so that they may reach their full potential.

We believe that each child is a unique individual with the capacity for growth and we work to maximize the potential of every student in the program.

Please See Website

Danielle’s Garden At Covina Development Center

Covina Development Center (CDC) has installed a unique Children’s Wheelchair Accessible Edible Garden and Outdoor Classroom.

The Design

At the request of CDC, students of the Cal. Poly .Pomona School of Landscape Architecture, led by instructor, Megan Fairleigh, designed and installed a fully accessible children’s garden and outdoor classroom, for Covina Development Center. Forty-five students and their instructors installed the garden the last week in April 2009 as a community-based service learning project.

  This unique garden features many edible plants, so that a child can pick a strawberry or blueberry, even if they are in a wheelchair. Throughout the garden, there are pathways so that the children can go in and among the plants. There are formal seating areas to read stories, sing songs or have a lesson.   A shaded area provides a gathering place under a tree for children to sit, draw pictures or have a picnic lunch. The garden also features a few touches of whimsy to delight children of all ages, many beautiful brightly painted birdhouses situated in the trees around the garden and three topiary animals, a bear, a giraffe and a lion.  The perennial shrubs are under planted with lilies and daffodils so that the children will be able to pick them as gifts for their mothers at Mothers Day in future years.

Why a Garden for Children?

Our school is an early care and education preschool program for young children with and without special needs ages birth through five years.  (please check out our website) www.covinadevelopmentcenter.com  It is a fully “ inclusive,” program in that one third of the children have a developmental disability and come to our program for Early Intervention.  The remaining two thirds of the children qualify for subsidized childcare so that their parents can work or attend job training.  Often the children and their families are facing multiple challenges and many of them live in situations with very little access to nature or the outdoors. Garden based learning is a new and fast growing method used by many leading schools across America to enhance a child’s learning.

It is our program’s goal to provide an enriched early education experience for these children, which will not only meet their developmental and academic needs but will also provide them with empathy, respect and appreciation  for the earth and the lessons of nature.

How the garden came to be

The Garden is named for Danielle Vasquez, who 5 years old, and has attended our school since she was a baby. Her family graciously gave us the initial grant to start the garden, Megan Fairleigh, Sam Sabin III, and Andy Wilcox, coordinated the resources of Cal. Poly Pomona Department of Landscape Architecture to install the garden as a community based service learning project.

In addition, the Woodworking Special Education Students at La Mirada High School built the bird houses and the preschoolers who attend our program painted them.  Often several children worked on one birdhouse because it was such big job for very small children to paint each one.

Garden Sponsors and Donors

Many individuals  and groups sponsored the project to assist with the costs of the garden.

A Special Thanks to the Family of Danielle Vasquez, Dad, German Vasquez and Grandmother: Rita Tynes

A Special Thanks go to the Cal. Poly Pomona Department of Plant Sciences for help in coordinating the product donations.

Plants were donated by:

·          Monrovia Nursery Company

·          Mira Costa College, Department of Horticulture

Building Materials Donations

·          Pavestone Company

·          PAVE EDGE

Irrigation Materials Donations

·          Hunter Industries

·          Ewing Irrigation Products

Transportation provided by:

·          Jason Miller Transportation  

Birdhouse Sponsors:

 Many individuals sponsored these birdhouses to assist with the costs of the garden

• Artemis Concepts – Diane Fonseca
• Roy and Betty Futter
• Citrus Valley Florist- DonWaters
• Charles Gustufson MFT
• Morris Ndugire
• Michelle Elmore
• Elite Financial Solutions
• Wendy McCurrie
• Yoko Saxon
• Mercedes Salas
• Paul and Sarah Parker
• Sherrie Berillon
• Maja Block
• Faith Bautista
• James  & Diana McConnell

       In Memory of Dr. Rodman F Garrity

• Tristian M. Monterastelli
• Janice P. Limahelu

.  

References:

• Covina Development Center;
• 240 S. Grand Avenue
• Covina, Ca.  91724
• www.covindevelopmentcenter.org
• Phone 626 967 7153

• Cal Poly Instructors:
• Megan Fairleigh,
• mfairleigh@miracosta.edu

• Samuel Sabin III

       Ssabin3@gmail.com

• Andy Wilcox

aowilcox@csupomona.edu

• Ca. Poly Pomona School of Landscape Architecture
• Website:
• www.csupomona.edu/~la

Danielles Garden

At

Covina Development Center

A fully accessible garden and outdoor classroom for children

Covina Development Center

A non profit public benefit corporation

240 So.Grand Ave

Covina, Ca.  91724

626 967 7153

Note:  We are still accepting tax deductible donations for the upkeep of the garden