Cottage Children's Center opens

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

While taking care of hundreds of patients young and old, Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital employees will now know that their young children are being taken care of with the opening of the Orfalea Children’s Center at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.
The newly constructed center, which is located one block from the hospital on Castillo Street, consists of three cottage-style houses.

Janet O’Neill, director of public affairs for Cottage Health System, said the vision for a Children’s Center was realized after The Orfalea Fund, founded by local philanthropists Paul and Natalie Orfalea, contributed $5 million to the project. O’Neill said the gift is the largest of its kind in the history of Cottage Health System.
“With the Orfaleas, Cottage shares a passion for high quality care, not only for our patients but for our employees as well,” said Ron Werft, president and chief executive officer of Cottage Health System. “Ideally, working parents need to know that their children are nearby in a secure and stimulating environment.”
The Children’s Center is part of the hospital’s multiyear project to completely rebuild the hospital in order to comply with state seismic codes.
With the Orfalea gift, The Campaign for Cottage Health System, which has a goal of $100 million, now totals $75 million.
The new Children’s Center will provide two separate programs, one for employees’ infants and toddlers up to two-and-a-half years-old and another for children two-and-a-half to kindergarten age.
A statement released by Cottage says the facilities include expanded classrooms, keyed entry for parents, a private breastfeeding room, kitchen areas for each group and separate outdoor play areas for different age groups.
O’Neill said the Children’s Center was designed to meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) specifications. Some of the LEED specifications used at the Children’s Center include solar-generated energy, bamboo flooring and the use of wood from regenerating forests for construction.
Providing child care for its employees isn’t a new idea at Cottage.
O’Neill said the hospital’s original Children’s Center opened in 1981 and was expanded to include an infant-toddler center in 1992.
“We are pleased to partner with Cottage to help ensure that its coworkers can give 100 percent on the job knowing that their young children are receiving excellent care nearby,” said Natalie Orfalea.