A Huge Step Foward for the Future of CREAR

Thanks to our donors incredible support we were able to purchase a permanent home for CREAR.

The CREAR team and our lawyers pop champagne to celebrate the purchase of our building on October 1st, 2021.

Bill Burden (clockwise from left), Carlos Angulo, Lucas Mozingo, Nikola Ruhlow, Beatriz Jiron, Lucia Mahlich, Adalberto Cruz, Andrea Keith, Rekha Chandrasekharan

For years now we have been journeying towards owning our own CREAR Learning Center. Our temporary and shared spaces proved integral to our growth and stabilization as a consolidated organization and enabled us to build a strong foundation that will serve us in all of our present and future community work. A permanent home was necessary though, especially as our little town grows around us, but it felt like a very tall order for such a small organization.

We are beyond grateful and excited to reveal that, due to the generosity of a few dedicated donors, we were able to take full ownership of our current operating space.This little circular blue house with the mural of tropical plants and animals is ours! Because of this, we have a completely secure future serving the Samara/El Torito community, and we can guarantee improved programming, increased impact, and an overall better CREAR. Thank you to our donors for contributing your little grain of sand to this project, it has been the sum of all of these contributions and actions that have built our present place.

It is with much pleasure that we announce that our building will now be named the June Nickerson CREAR Learning Center in honor of the woman many people in this community knew and loved for over forty years as Doña Junio. In appreciation for, and recognition of, the many things she did, all that she gave, what she meant to so many members of our community, and how much she cared for our community and the people who live here. Doña Junio led an exemplary life: always trying to further her own education and learning, always offering to teach others, always willing to help others; and encouraging others to always do the same for those around them. We could not be more honored to carry her name on our building and we pledge to do her name and will justice in the years to come. May her life and legacy be an example to us all.

On March 12th, 2022, we gathered here at CREAR to inaugurate, name the building and celebrate with our staff, board, and capital campaign donors. We want to extend our deepest gratitude to these patrons of CREAR, you have backed us for years, and now you gave us a home, we love you so much! We would also like to thank Darin “Red” Rienks, the previous owner of our property that kept the sale price low and accessible for us, basically making a very generous donation and enabling us to purchase the property.

Kent & Karen Keith

The Nickerson Family

Carlton Cook

Meredith & Tim Aberle

Jeffry Abrams

Keith Thomas

Ida Clay & Family

West Fraser & Helena Fox Fraser

My gratitude is profound and my obligation to steward our funding and continue to grow and improve CREAR is greater than ever. As always, thank you for journeying with us,

-Andrea

Our Capital Campaign donors gather to dedicate The June Nickerson CREAR Learning Center on March 12th.

Carlton Cook (from left), Quentin Nickerson, Kent Keith, Ida Clay, Mark Nickerson, George Nickerson, Jeffry Abrams, Keith Thomas. Not pictured: Karen Keith, Meredith & Tim Aberle, Helena Fox Fraser & West Fraser

Juncal and Naomi enjoy the pink flowers under the shade of our apple tree in "Carlton's Corner." This space is dedicated to our longtime supporter, Carlton Cook.

Nate's Garden is located at the entrance of CREAR and was planted to honor our major donors Kent & Karen Keith. Our students love to play around it and take care of it.