The Bumblebee Jasper Community Centre has been founded by two single mothers who identified a need for community and family engagement within Newfield, NJ and surrounding areas. We feel that this is especially necessary during the fall and winter months as temperatures drop and children spend more time indoors and less time outdoors engaging with each other. The primary goal of the Centre will be to offer a safe place for children and families to go in order to connect and develop a strong, supportive, and engaged community. The founders have also identified similar needs for the summer months while children are out of school. Some of the services the Bumblebee Jasper Centre will provide will be recreation, drop- in tutoring services, drop-in mental health services, life skills courses, social-emotional learning courses, art and music therapy services, family game and movie nights, various exercise and yoga courses, a technology room, a study/research room, as well as a meditation/relaxation room. The Bumblebee Jasper Centre will not be affiliated with any specific belief system, as we want to create a loving and accepting environment for anyone who wishes to become a member. As an organization, we whole-heartedly believe in inclusion of all people and beliefs. The founders, Kimberly A. Byrd and Ronda Ashmen-Gallo have been friends since October of 1998, and worked together in management positions at that time. Since then, both women have gone on to have families of their own and educational pursuits that closely align with the mission and vision of the Bumblebee Jasper Centre. The founders believe that having strong family, community, and social supports are paramount to having a successful life, and have been shown to have a positive impact on children and their future outcomes.
