Bremerton Community Center Funding Passes Full Senate

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) announced that funding she secured funding to boost construction work and community development in Kitsap in the Fiscal Year 2010 Senate Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill has passed the full Senate. The funding will create jobs building new facilities for local community efforts.

Naval Avenue Early Learning and Community Center, Bremerton: $750,000

This funding will be used for the expansion of an Early Learning center in Bremerton, WA.

Once complete, this facility will provide Head Start, Early Start and ECEAP programs in one of Bremerton’s lowest income neighborhoods where over 80% of school students qualify for free and reduced lunches.

“Investing in the Naval Avenue Early Learning and Community Center will create jobs immediately, and it will help Kitsap County children and community once it’s complete,” said Senator Patty Murray. “This investment will help Kitsap County children who need it most, and it will give the community a key educational resource.”

 “P-3 early learning is essential for the development of children.  It works and we can prove it with over seven years of statistics.  KCR’s proposed Naval Avenue Early Learning Center will enhance our efforts to teach our children, and it will provide a model of best practices for educators throughout the country,” said Linda Sullivan-Dudzic, early learning specialist for the Bremerton School District.

United Way of Kitsap County Community Center Improvement Project, Bremerton: $500,000

This funding will be used to develop a facility for the new United Way Non-Profit Community Center in Bremerton, WA.

The United Way Non-Profit Community Center will house several local non-profit agencies and organizations that provide a range of services to low-income members of the community.

“Our aim is to have the greatest positive impact on the lives of those who need our help the most.  This project is not just about a building, it is about bringing the community together and focusing our collective resources on creating measurable and lasting change,” said David Foote, Executive Director of the United Way of Kitsap County.