City of Seattle NEWS RELEASE

Gregory J. Nickels, MayorFor Immediate Release March 1, 2005Contact: Marianne Bichsel, 684-8878 / 730-8291 (cell) Karin Zaugg, 733-9810 / 465-8387 (cell) Mayor celebrates Seed of Life Child Care CenterSEATTLE – Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and SE Seattle community leaders welcomed Erica and Lashon Watson’s Seed of Life Center for Early Learning and Preschool LLC to Columbia City today.Last year, the Seed of Life Center needed to relocate from Beacon Hill due to light rail construction. The Watsons were able to successfully relocate their business and purchase their new site in Columbia City with assistance from a number of public and private partners, including the City of Seattle, Sound Transit, Wells Fargo, Evergreen Community Development Association and Community Capital Development.”The successful relocation of the Seed of Life Center is a great example of many people pitching in to help make sure that this important resource and small business can grow and continue to serve its community,” said Mayor Nickels. “We’re making a difference in the lives of the children and families who use this child care center.””Being able to own our facility and actually grow after being worried about possibly having to shut down is exciting,” said Erica Watson, co-owner of Seed of Life Center. “We’re looking forward to the challenge of reaching out and providing quality child care services to even more families in the Rainier Valley at our new expanded location.”Seed of Life is the first African American owned child care center in the state to receive National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation, national recognition for highest quality childcare. Seed of Life currently provides child care services to 40 children in classes of infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers, and their child care professionals speak English, Spanish and Somalian to the children.For more information, please visit the mayor’s website at www.seattle.gov /mayor.###