Beverly Children's Learning Center Celebrates 50 Years Of Supporting North Shore Families

BEVERLY, MA — A half-century of supporting families of diverse backgrounds from the North Shore will be treated to a gala celebration at the shoreside Misselwood on the campus of Endicott College when the Beverly Children's Learning Center welcomes back program graduates and looks toward the future at its 50th anniversary "Through the Looking Glass" event.

The Sept. 21 event is designed to be part retrospective, part fundraiser, and part memorial honoring the lifelong contributions of founder Robert Guyer.

"Although we have come a long way since our humble beginning in the basement of St. Peter's Church in Beverly 50 years ago, our organization's history is a large part of who we have become over those years," Executive Director Judith Cody told Patch. "While we have built on our initiatives and expanded our focus, our original mission has never changed from the goal of providing quality education and care services accessible to all families regardless of their diverse and individual backgrounds and life circumstances."

Cody said that history will be recognized through a special video showcasing the people, families, children, administrators, board members and community partners who shared it — as well as Guyer as one of the Learning Center's founding fathers.

"We are looking forward to celebrating this milestone with many dear friends and supporters, both old and new," Cody said. "Although we have lost a number of our founding board members over the years, we still have a long list of expected guests who have been with our organization since our early days."

The Beverly Children's Learning Center's goal is to provide child-directed, nature-based educational growth for students through age 13 as well as their families, and do it in a nurturing, safe and affordable environment.

"One of the qualities that we pride ourselves on at BCLC is that we are an early education program that addresses the needs of the whole family, not just the child alone," Cody said. "As a result, we have been able to build positive relationships with our families and facilitate successful developmental outcomes for our children. By respecting our families' cultural funds of knowledge, we introduce our families to a strong network of social connections, self-advocacy and resiliency skills, and overall family supports.

"We have had several success stories throughout the years, such as parents getting to attain their GEDs, graduating college, gaining parenting skills that improved their relationships with their children, obtaining financial stability, advocating for services for their child, or becoming employed in better employment opportunities."

The event will include a cocktail reception and a light dinner and dessert will be served. A cash bar will be open, as well as a silent auction.

Tickets can be purchased here.

While the gala will welcome back many former students and families, as well as staff members, the general public is also invited to attend and support the Beverly Children Learning Center's efforts.

"Research evidence demonstrates that children who have access to quality early education have larger vocabularies by third grade, are more likely to graduate high school, less likely to experience teen pregnancies, less likely to become incarcerated, and able to obtain higher paying employment as adults," Cody said. "Our nature-based learning focus also promotes environmental stewardship among our children and families.

"Becoming involved with our organization assists us in furthering a mission that is beneficial for everyone, not just the families enrolled in our programs."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)