Kevin and Phyllis Crane made their dream finally come true!  On December 15, 2008, "Kids Connection Learning Center", Sharon Hill, PA, was open to the public for children ages six weeks to five years of age.  The Crane's do make an exceptional team based on their diverse backgrounds.  Phyllis has worked in this field for over 18 years to include as a teacher and a center director.  She knows pretty much all there is to know about children and what it takes to run a quality child care facility.  If there's one thing that she does not lack, that would be experience.  Kevin is a retired federal agent with 21 years conducting investigations in support of national security.  Eight of those years was running a field office consisting of 15 agents and support staff.  Kevin has been  doing martial arts for over 32 years and is a 3rd degree black belt in Tang Soo Do.  He has provided thousands of hours of community service as a certified anti-child abduction instructor, runs ten anti-bully karate clubs for the Interboro and Ridley School districts in Delaware County, and also teaches karate to children ages three to six.  He is, of course, in charge of running the security aspect of the child care center and has set very stringent standards.  

Kevin had the opportunity (he would say good fortune) of meeting Phyllis at the child care center where he taught karate at and she was the director.  After about six months of getting to know each other professionally, Kevin gathered the courage to ask Phyllis out on a date.  Realizing that they were the proverbial "soul mates", they were married a little over a year later.  Having a common interest for their love of children, they decided that they would open their own child care center to pursue a dream of working together in the field they both loved.  Once they conceived the idea to do so, they needed to believe that they could one day accomplish this goal.  The real work was about to begin.

Opening a fully licensed child care center is a daunting task.  After attending seminars with the Department of Public Welfare (the state agency that oversees child care facilities) and researching state requirements, Kevin was required to go back to college in order to supplement the credits he had from his Penn State Pre-Law BA he acquired 25 years earlier.  As a result, he enrolled at Delaware County Community College and, for the next year, was a full time student majoring in Early Childhood Education.  Along the way, he learned much about children, was accepted in the National Honor Society, and gained the admiration and respect of his college mates and professors.  

Once college was over, numerous things needed to be accomplished to start their program.  Kevin and Phyllis spent countless hours inspecting properties to use as a potential facility.  Most were either too expensive or not big enough to fit a professional child care center.  Additionally, financing the project would pose another concern.  To seek guidance and advice, Kevin contacted Dr. Bruce Downing of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) located at Widener University, Chester, PA.  Bruce was able to provide Kevin with a myriad of information and services that were available, most of which were free.  After several meetings, Kevin took the information he gleaned from Bruce and began lining up his business ducks to help make the dream a reality.  A business plan was drafted, lines of credit were secured, and the process was off and running.

A commercial building was eventually found by doing a drive by in Sharon Hill, PA.  The owner, Richard Falcone, a very fair and amiable man, was eager to have the Crane's open a child care center at his 8,400 square foot facility.  Mr. Falcone was a very successful business man for many years and believed in the Crane's and their dream of opening a child care facility.  The location and large capacity of the building felt right to the Cranes, therefore, a contract was subsequently executed and signed in August, 2008.  Construction began immediately after the Crane's and Mr. Falcone came up with an appropriate floor plan for the perfect center.  Practically everything would be new since the building was not much more than a concrete shell with large front windows.  The potential, however, was right on the mark!

Over the course of the next three to four months, walls were put up, wiring was placed, flooring was laid, a fenced playground was implemented, and state of the art security cameras and keyless access was put into the center.  The Crane's were a part of almost every aspect of this process to include ordering the numerous pieces of school room furniture and necessary supplies.  Long days of 14 to 18 hours were not unusual for Kevin and Phyllis, but they didn't mind because the process was a labor of love for them.  They knew from the beginning that starting this business was going to be an arduous undertaking based on what it was going to take in order to make their new facility state of the art.  Having visited 20 to 30 other centers in the area, the Crane's realized that most were either unprofessional, unclean, not using developmentally appropriate teaching methods, and sometimes nothing more than warehouses of children.  This would not be the case with the Crane's child care facility!

Since opening their doors to new students, enrollment has steadily increased.  Parents who visit the center have expressed how beautiful and bright the facility is compared to other facilities the parents had previously visited or had their children enrolled with.  As a result of continued enrollment, the Crane's already have a staff of 15 employees and expect to hire more as enrollment continues to climb.  Kevin has subsequently met again with Bruce at the SBDC to explore various loan programs and to begin building a much needed web site with the assistance of graduate intern Andy Rymarczuk.  Through hard work, maintaining  a professional facility, and having the assistance of the SBDC, the Crane's feel that their future and the future of their new business is extremely bright!

Editor's Note:  Be sure to visit Kids Connection Learning Center on the web at:  www.KidsConnectionFun.com