Photos by Marie Mccolm Kids Connection had an open house to celebrate six years at 134 Washington St., Monte Vista. About 20 members of the community and city staff attended the event on Nov. 30. Kids Connection Director Anika Velasquez speaks during the open house anniversary celebration on Nov. 30.

MONTE VISTA — “I have such a long list of everything I love about my job, but my favorite would have to be the kids,” said Anika Velasquez, director of Monte Vista Kids Connection. 

On Wednesday, Nov. 30, Kids Connection hosted an open house for its sixth-year anniversary.  About 20 members of the community and city staff attended the event.

The history of Kids Connection goes back to when it was the Boys and Girls Club. The club once had an active unit in Monte Vista, however, due to lack of funding, the club closed its doors in 2008.

With the high demand for quality afterschool programs still being a need in town, the citizens and community, decided that something needed to be done to facilitate this, shortly after, The Kids Club, was officially formed, and later the name was changed to Monte Vista Kids Connection.

From 2008 to 2011, Kids Connection, was originally at City Hall. Space was limited, with a small art room, game room, kitchen, and reception area. Staffing for Kids Connection was limited as well, with only 2-3 staffers and a director.

In 2011, it moved to the auditorium at Bill Metz Elementary School, and became fully licensed through the State of Colorado as a school-aged childcare facility. The auditorium worked well for a while and had nearly double the space.

In 2015, Bill Metz Elementary had an Influx of students and had to close the doors on Kids Connection, due to needing to accommodate the increase of children. At this point, Kids Connection began looking for a new building.

After a year of looking, Kids Connection moved to 134 Washington St., a building that was formerly an auto parts store. The building had been vacant for a few years. With funding, and partnerships in place, along with some extensive remodeling, the building was remodeled into a fully licensed childcare facility. The facility was also dedicated in the name of Robert Bryning, known as “The Bryning House.” Bryning began the program years ago. 

Bryning’s daughter, Barb Sears, was at the open house, and with a large smile she said, “My dad would be so proud to see all of this, and how far it has come. I am happy to see all of this, and how it has turned out. My dad started all of this, got it all lined out with funding and everything. He also convinced Anika to take the job here. I walk by this place every day and to come in and see all the rooms, and look at everything, and see how it has grown; my dad would have been really proud.” 

Kids Connection currently has 124 youth, ages 3-18, enrolled for 2022. The facility has three large activity rooms, an administration office, a prep kitchen, and a sick room, along with multiple storage closets. The staff has grown as well, with 4-5 program staff, a director and an assistant director. 

Director Velasquez spoke at the open house about her job.

“My job is always different, never the same, so enjoyable,” Velasquez said. “I get to come to work and interact with all these kiddos that have the best stories, and amazing backgrounds. We don’t want any of these kids to ever feel like they are coming in to be judged, we want them all to feel welcome. Everyone deserves a place where they can just walk in and feel like they are part of a big family. We do offer homework help for all the children. The staff also gets a big refresher every year, we work hard to help the kids to support them in their academic endeavors as best as we can. We look at ourselves as bridging the gap between school life and home life.”

Velasquez also spoke about her vision for the kids.

“We just want to be a safe place for the kids,” Velasquez said. “We want to encourage them to reach their full potential, give them the opportunity to grow in a place where there is no judgment. All the outside stressors that kids must deal with in the community or anywhere else, they don’t have to deal with any of that here. This is a community place where you can forget about everything, take a deep breath, and focus on being a kid.” 

City Manager GiGi Dennis and Mayor Dale Becker attended the open house.

“The staff who work here, have expressed how they have one of the greatest jobs, I want to add they also have one of the most important jobs in our community,” Becker said. “They are touching the lives of these young people, to really make a difference. They really do a fantastic job.”