Former Resort Owner gives $1 Million to Childcare Center
Activists for a new childcare center pose along with donor John Byrne III. (Photo by Soren Wuerth)
By Soren Wuerth
TNews Editor
In an emotional speech during a fundraising gala Friday night, former Alyeska Resort owner John Byrne III announced he is donating $1 million to the Little Bears Playhouse for a new childcare center building in the valley.
In the tearful address, Byrne suggested the new child care center—to be built on Alyeska-owned land near its hotel—be named after legendary volunteer and Girdwood, Inc. founder Diana Stone Livingstone who stood before him in the hushed crowd.
The Little Bears Playhouse daycare center is currently housed in a decades-old building near the fire station and has capacity for 27 toddlers.
"We're falling short of what our community needs," said Krystal Hoke, a realtor and leading advocate for the new childcare center. "Our new building will match the enthusiasm of our children."
The effort to secure a larger building has been under way for several years and is spearheaded by Hoke and Girdwood, Inc.
Among short speeches was a personal story about a condition common among parents unable to secure daycare in Girdwood, they call the "four-hour commute", in which parents need to shuttle their kids back and forth to Anchorage twice a day for childcare.
The building planned on Resort property would accomodate 112 children and provide space for a playground. After a municipal bond failed in 2020, Pomeroy Lodgings, the Resort's current owner, awared a 99-year lease for a new childcare facility at $1 per year.
The childcare center was awarded a donation of $350,000 from the Rasmussen Foundation, $100,000 from Chugach Powder Guides, and $250,000 from Forget-Me-Not nursery. The group also received a capital grant from the State.
Another $47,000 was raised during Friday's event, including a $25,000 donation from the local Rotary Club.
Following Byrne's lachrymose address somewhere a glass shattered.
"It's not a party 'til somebody cries and somebody breaks a glass," said Marianne Daniels.
About 60 people attended the Little Bears fundraiser giving a total of $47,000, including $25,000 from Girdwood's Rotary Club.