The philosophy of Bay Area Child Development Centers in Corpus Christi is to become a second home for their charges. Bay Area has two facilities in the city, one at 4926 Greenwood Drive and another at 5125 Embassy. Courtesy photo
Bay Area Child Development Center’s two Corpus Christi locations grew out of a home care business that started with 12 kids. Owner Anita May was a paralegal before opening her home to take care of her own two children along with 10 others.
“Lawyers don’t understand when you have to take off work because your kids are sick,” she said. “I had a friend with a group home who watched my kids. I lost my job because my kids were sick, so I started doing this — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
That was in 1992. Before long, she had a wait list of 300 kids, all needing a safe and nurturing place to stay. She opened a second group home, but the waiting list didn’t drop. In 1996, she bought a building and opened the original Bay Area Child Development Center at 5215 Embassy. Currently, 80 kids call the building home 40 hours a week. She gave up the 24-hour service after about two years in the building.
“It was hard to get people who would work in the middle of the night,” she said.
In 2010, May opened a second facility licensed for 147 kids at 4926 Greenwood Drive. Her success came from hard work, research and a lot of luck and heart, she said.
“I put together a business plan to go to the bank,” she recalled. “I got lucky that the man who owned the building I wanted was willing to do owner financing.”
She makes her own shelves and changing tables and decorated the centers herself.
“I’ve built houses,” she told Corpus Christi Business News. “I love interior design. I do that on the side.”
Now that the business is established, she is able to have outside interests. Much of the business is run by Chief Operating Officer Priscilla Herrera and Chief Financial Officer JoAnn Amaya, who also happens to be May’s cousin.
“I stated out helping my cousin a couple of days a week,” Amaya said. “It ended up being a full-time job.”
Both Amaya and Herrera are proud of the centers they help run.
“I’m proud of the quality of care we provide,” Herrera said, “and the fact that education is so important.”
Bay Area Child Development Center’s basic philosophy is that children learn through play and active involvement.
“We provide a caring and positive atmosphere,” Amaya said. “We create a warm and nurturing place to learn and grow. These kids develop a good self-image while also building social skills.”
While Amaya deals with the numbers and the parents, for Herrera, her work is a true labor of love.
“For me, it’s personal,” she said. “I learned at a young age that I could not have kids. God just gave me a whole bunch of kids that I can work with every day, shaping lives.”
For May, the commitment of the people who work at the center is vital.
“It is important for me that it feel as much like home as possible for the children,” she said. “I want them to get the same love and attention they would get from their own parents. And to learn as much as they can be taught before they go to school. I want them to be ready.”
Both schools are rated as Texas Rising Star Schools, which mean the quality of child care exceeds the Minimum Standards for Child Care Licensing by the state of Texas.
Bay Area Child Development Center I is located at 5125 Embassy in Corpus Christi, (361) 857-6543. Center II is located at 4926 Greenwood Drive, (361) 225-2002. The center’s website can be found at bayareachild.net.
