Wynn Center to become community hub
By Jessica Brown
Big goals for a big project are afoot in Winchester, and it’s the dream of some local residents to make those goals a reality. MacKenzie Gieseke is board president for the Wynn Center, and is overseeing plans to repurpose an old building.
She says her main functions are currently coordinating and researching funds as well as acting as core project manager.
“We started planning for the Wynn Center about a year ago,” Gieseke says. Since then, the board, consisting of a handful of other residents, has focused on what tasks must take place in order to see the building, which has become dilapidated, become legally ready for occupancy.
The hope is that the building will serve as a common space, or hub, for the community that offers various resources. Furthermore, it will be named in honor of Winchester resident Danny Wynn, a 2002 Winchester High School graduate. He went on to become a helicopter mechanic in the Air Force, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Wynn was tragically killed in a car accident just outside of Winchester in 2006. “His mother was my day care provider,” Gieseke shares, adding that naming the center for him was the best way to honor his memory.
“He always brought smiles,” Gieseke adds about Wynn.
Gieseke emphasizes that the biggest concern to move things along will be to make the building safe and secure for all who enter it. “We want to be up to date on all the building codes before the next inspection,” she notes. Those will be done by entities involving the fire marshal’s office, the Scott County Health Department and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.
The largest obstacle standing in the way of finishing the project is finding funds, according to Gieseke. Obtaining funding to do the updates, some of which will be mandatory in the aforementioned state codes, could cost thousands of dollars.
“Right now, it’s looking like it will take approximately $100,000,” Gieseke says, adding that replacing the roof and doors alone is estimated at $40,000.
Plans for the proposed day care include a fully functioning kitchen, bathrooms, infant room and main play area — that will display a real life replica of Winchester’s town square, complete with business store fronts. She’s hoping representing local businesses and departments like the police and fire departments will also help those entities be more willing to sponsor some of the changes.
In addition to the day care, there will be an after school program for older children, which also comes with a hefty price tag. That’s partly due to the necessity of making some more mandatory changes, such as removing old carpeting that covers the entirety of the old gymnasium area, removing mold and fixing leaks in parts of the ceiling.
Gieseke says she and board member Wendy Smith have plans for that. “July 1st is a new grant cycle and that’s where that money will go,” she says. Gieseke also says she hopes sources such as targeted donation campaigns, vendor events, rummage sales and sending form letters to potential donors will yield much needed funds.
Even with volunteers to do the heavy lifting and much of the organizational labor, plus donations of much needed equipment and supplies, the expense of such an ambitious undertaking is daunting. Having currently raised about $5,000 is, in Gieseke’s opinion, only a drop in the bucket — but she says she is very appreciative of all the help they have already received.
At least partially offset by volunteer efforts, like donations of items and moving things like lockers donated by the high school, the center is still in need of much more help achieving the board’s shared prospects for the center. The building is owned by nonprofit group Winchester Fellowship, that rents it to Gieseke, who is resolute. “The building was established to be a community center and it will stay a community center,” she says.
For more information about how to join in the effort, visit the “Wynn Center” page on Facebook — or contact MacKenzie Gieseke at 217-730-4713.
