Jeremiah’s Place provides crisis care for children

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Who do you trust to watch your children when there’s a crisis? Is it a family member, a close friend or a trusted baby sitter? What if you have no one? You turn to Jeremiah’s Place.

Now in its fourth year, Jeremiah’s Place is a free 24/7 emergency child-abuse prevention center in the Kingsley Association building in Larimer. The center has served more than 400 children from across 58 ZIP codes since it opened in 2014.

The highest concentration of children come from East Liberty, Wilkinsburg and Homewood. Most are from low-income neighborhoods where the lives of families are especially stressful, said Lisa Perry, executive director of the center.

The center was co-founded by pediatrician Lynne Williams, obstetrics-gynecologist Tammy Murdock and child advocate Eileen Sharbaugh, who all saw a need for crisis day care in the area. The center is named after a child Dr. Williams’ mother fostered.

The center provides a safe space for families to leave their children during a time of crisis such as domestic violence, hospitalization, job search, a lack of long-term child care and even homelessness. Need is determined case by case when there is a situation where a child could be harmed or neglected. The center is not a baby sitter, Ms. Perry emphasized.

The center is equipped to care for children from birth to age 6. Each of the three bedrooms is furnished with four beds, a special evacuation crib and a dresser full of children’s clothing. Outside of the rooms is a fully stocked kitchen with a shelf dedicated to macaroni and cheese.

Beyond the kitchen is an expansive play area filled with dozens of toys and costumes. In the reading corner, staff members read to children who sit in colorful foam chairs. Almost everything in the center was donated or purchased through donations.

You almost forget the children are here because their parents are facing crises.