Help PIC make it to the top

IT WOULD CERTAINLY BE a shame to lose more than $1 million in federal stimulus funds for the Plymouth Intergenerational Center.

But that’s what will happen if the Plymouth Intergenerational Coalition can’t raise the last $650,000 it needs by April 15 in order to begin construction of the Plymouth Intergenerational Center.

That’s because the federal community development block grant, funded by stimulus money, which the coalition won last fall will be withdrawn if construction of the multiage center does not get under way by mid-April.

The coalition is working hard to raise that final amount and begin building the $4.2 million center, which has been in the wishing and dreaming stage for more than a decade.

The center will provide a one-of-a-kind melting pot, including facilities for the Plymouth Senior Center, the Family Resource Center, the Plymouth Head Start center, Growing Generations Child Care and Parents Plus.

Each of those users will have their own dedicated, up-to-date space and, more importantly, the opportunities and the facilities for inter-generational interaction that will enhance the quality of life for all users and the community as a whole, as well as strengthen the sense of community in Plymouth and Sheboygan County and enhance the growth and education of our young people.

“This community and this county will be delighted by what they see there, the opportunities to help the community and all the people,” PIC Director Martha Laning has said.

Laning has been working hard to educate the community, conducting information sessions at various locations, with more to come today and next week. There are also fund-raising events planned over the next several weeks, from a brat fry to a sheepshead tournament.

The goal is to push the fund-raising over the top so ground can be broken in April — and Plymouth and Sheboygan County can point with pride to a unique facility built with the help of federal stimulus funds.

Then, a dream that has been a long time coming to fruition, that has undergone many stops and starts and changes in direction, will finally become a great reality.

And that, as Laning said, “will be a phenomenal day.”

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