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September 2026
Newsletter
| | | Critchlow Adkins Children’s Centers is dedicated to nurturing children and their families by providing quality, educationally-based, and financially accessible childcare in a safe, diverse, and enriching environment. | | |
  A Fresh Start and a Full Heart! | |
With your support, the new school year is off to a stupendous start! Our students spent the month adjusting to new routines, getting to know one another, and having tons of fun with both new and old friends. This time of year can be challenging for children, but thanks to you, our Critchlow Adkins Kids have a safe, welcoming, and nurturing environment that helps to ease the transition and makes learning fresh and exciting!
Watch the video below to see some of the smiles YOU made possible this month, then scroll down for more September highlights!
| | Look At What We've Been Up To! | | |
Arty Party!
During “Let’s Get ARTSY” week at our St. Michaels Site, the school age students showed off their creativity with scribble art, mosaics, and feather and pom pom painting. While learning about the parts of the body, our two-year-olds made bodies out of construction paper, guessed each other’s identities by looking at photos of each other’s eyes, and even made tree paintings using their fingers and toes!
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Leaf-ing Summer Behind!
The blustery weather was a perfect backdrop for our White Marsh school age students to explore “Signs of Fall.” They tried various apples with dipping sauces, created autumn art, and spent lots of time outside. The preschoolers brought the outdoors inside, using tools to dig for bugs. Then they headed outside and turned their mud kitchen into a camp kitchen, cooking and serving meals using natural materials and lots of imagination.
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Teamwork Makes the Dream Work!
In the preschool class at our Cordova Site, students learned about teamwork and taking turns. They put their new knowledge into action when they worked together to make play dough. The school age classrooms have been exploring the world of feelings. They discussed things that make them happy, became emotion detectives to uncover clues that might mean someone is sad, and shared an experience that made them feel proud.
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Better Together!
Friend Week was a highlight of the month at our Easton School Age Site. The children learned what it means to be good friends and practiced sharing, kindness, teamwork, and encouragement. They had tons of fun with partner activities, board games, composition book projects, and friendship art. They even worked together to make a delicious macaroni and cheese snack!
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On the Dot!
At our Easton Preschool Site, our littlest learners celebrated Dot Day – a special day all about creativity, courage, and trying your best. After reading the story, “The Dot,” by Peter H. Reynolds, they created dot collage masterpieces using buttons, pom poms, and beads. Other September activities included mixing paints to make their favorite colors, a special show and tell to help the classmates learn more about each other, and building a tower to measure each student’s height!
| | Follow us on Facebook to get your Friday fix of cuteness with our Weekly Round Up! | | | More September Celebrations! | | |
Crab, Clams, and Connections!
Our Executive Director, Cristy Morrell, headed to Crisfield for the Annual Tawes Crab and Clam Bake. While there, she connected with Governor Wes Moore and Comptroller Brooke Lierman. Both Governor Moore and Comptroller Lierman have been supportive of our advocacy efforts in Annapolis. We are grateful for their efforts to optimize the vital economic impact of high quality childcare in the State of Maryland.
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Mahjong Magic!
Our sincerest appreciation goes out to everyone who joined our annual American Mahjong Tournament, hosted by Zandi Nammack, on September 8th at the Talbot County Free Library in Easton.
It was wonderful to see so many neighbors coming together to play for fun, make memories, and strengthen our community! After a rousing all-levels tournament, players enjoyed light refreshments and awarded prizes for the winners and best “mahj” outfits.

Thank you for joining us and going all in! Together, you helped raise more than $9,000 to Build Brighter Futures for local children and their families!
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Conor's Project Success!
We are still overwhelmed by the success of the 9th Annual Conor's Project Sporting Clay Shoot and Crab Feast on September 13th at Pintail Point.
It was a beautiful day, bringing together people from every corner of our community to honor Conor's memory by making a difference for the children and families we serve.
This incredible event raised an astounding $110,000 in support of our mission. Words cannot express our gratitude to Rennie Gay, his family, and all of the people and businesses who make this event possible each year.
Your support provides transportation to life-saving swimming lessons, engaging enrichment programming, and tuition assistance so that families at all income levels have access to the highest quality care possible. Thank you so much!
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Cocktails and Conversation!
We enjoyed a wonderful evening at Spiralis Gallery during our latest Cocktails and Conversation event, hosted by Board Member Drew Carroll. Many thanks to everyone who joined us to learn more about Critchlow Adkins, our programs, and the incredible impact community support makes on the lives of local children and their families.
| | Critchlow Adkins Trivia Night Returns! | | |
Gather your friends and get ready for Trivia fun... Our beloved annual Trivia Night celebration returns on Thursday, October 22nd at the Tred Avon Yacht Club!
Enjoy cocktails, a unique silent auction, a delicious dinner, and our annual fund-a-need paddle raise. And of course, you and your team will test your knowledge during a rousing game of Trivia, with prizes and bragging rights for the winning team.
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Last month, we shared that our St. Michaels Site ended the summer with a fabulous dance recital. They were showing off the skills they learned while working with Ayonna Hayman (or Mrs. Yonna, as the kids call her) from Greenlight & Co.
Ayonna lives on the Eastern Shore with her husband and three children. She says she’s a mom first, but she also wears quite a few hats between her businesses, working with youth, photography, weddings and events, and of course, dance.
After years of creating and teaching dance programs for youth in the community, Ayonna decided to officially launch Greenlight & Co.
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Through Greenlight, she offers classes, performance opportunities, pageants, community events, and other activities centered around building confidence and giving kids a space to be themselves, have fun, and try something new.
As the former librarian at St. Michaels Elementary School, Ayonna was already familiar with our St. Michaels Site and knew most of the children in our summer program. She visited the site twice a week during the summer season to dance with the campers. Each child came to her with a different personality and level of confidence, and Ayonna loved getting to know them, watching them come out of their shells, and seeing their progress over the weeks.
The recital gave the kids something to work towards, and they were very excited to show their friends and family what they had accomplished. Ayonna’s favorite part of the experience was seeing how proud the kids were of themselves after the show. Ayonna is looking forward to additional opportunities to work with our St. Michaels kids.
When asked about what inspires her to continue partnering with Critchlow Adkins, she shares, “What really stands out to me is the focus on making quality and enriching experiences accessible to children and families. I truly believe finances should never be the reason a child doesn’t get an opportunity to discover something they love, learn a new skill, or have an experience that helps build their confidence. I also love that the mission goes beyond simply providing childcare. Creating an environment where children feel safe, included, supported, and exposed to different experiences can have such a lasting impact. That aligns so much with what I try to do through Greenlight as well.”
Thank you, “Mrs. Yonna!” We are so grateful to have you as a part of our Critchlow Adkins family!
| | A September STEAM Project YOU Can Do At Home! | | |
Welcome to fall, y'all! Autumn is a season for chillier weather, changing leaves, and delicious apples. If you've got some apples at home just waiting for those fall recipes, then you've got the main ingredient in an awesome September STEAM engineering challenge!
As always, before launching into hands-on learning, we recommend gaining some inspiration from a good book. Our September recommendation is Iggy Peck, Architect, by Andrea Beaty.
| | | | Iggy loves to build! His parents are proud of his creations, though they are sometimes surprised by the materials he uses (including dirty diapers). Iggy's 2nd grade teacher declares her dislike for architecture, but Iggy's passion is too strong for him to give it up! | | |
Now that you've finished reading, it's time to take Iggy's inventive inspiration and channel it into your own building. Using only straws and masking tape, challenge your future engineer to construct a tower that will hold an apple at the top for at least ten seconds.
The tower should have a strong base, vertical supports, and a cradle at the top to hold the apple. Ask your child to brainstorm and plan out his/her design first. After building, it's time to test the tower by gently placing the apple on top. Are there any weak points that need reinforcement? Do any changes need to be made to the design? Make sure to strengthen the design before the final official test. Does your apple stay aloft for the full ten seconds or longer?
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As always, be as creative as you want, and make sure to have lots of fun learning together!
Visit our website for hundreds of additional STEAM activities you can do at home!
| | You're at the CORE of our success! | Artwork by Critchlow Adkins preschool students | | | |
You're the apple of our eye! No matter what variety of support you provide, your generosity plants the seeds to help our children grow towards sweet success. We're sending you bushels of thanks!
Consider a recurring monthly gift of any size to change lives with Critchlow Adkins all year round!
| | Support Critchlow Adkins While Shopping! | | Connect your Harris Teeter VIC card to Critchlow Adkins via the Together in Education Program, and when you purchase the brands listed below, you help earn money to support our programs! | | If you are a Weis Market customer, scan the bar code below at checkout to help Critchlow Adkins earn funds for supplies, programs, and more! | | Thank You To Our Critchlow Adkins Community and Business Partners! | | We are unbelievably grateful to all of the incredible local businesses who contributed time, energy, services, and financial assistance to make Conor's Project and our Mahjong Tournament a huge success! | | |
A special shoutout to:
The Point at Pintail for hosting the event
GW Hall and Sons for all-you-can-eat crabs
Catering by Jamie for delicious hot dogs and hamburgers
H&S Family of Bakeries for beautifully baked rolls
Sight and Sounds and Lee Coulby for entertainment and homemade crushes
Jason Spies for providing beer
Retay USA for donating a shotgun for our raffle giveaway
Additional Conor's Project contributing businesses:
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Bam's Hook and Hose Fire Equipment, LLC
Bishop's Backhoe & Plumbing, Inc.
Blue Crab House
Bryan and Sons
Bryan Brother's Foundation, Inc.
Bullock's Deli
Caraballo Farms, LLC
Carpenter Street Saloon
Cianci Chiropractic Center
Clark Realty, LLC
Dock Street Foundation
Doc's Restaurant
DuCo, LLC
Foster and Son, Inc.
Fuge and Associates
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Gay's Seafood
Griffy's Lawn Service
Higgins Crab Company, LLC
James Real Estate Services, LLC
Kleppinger Electric Co.
KlineCo
L & L Charters
Laney Enterprises
Lions Club of Easton, MD, Inc.
Morgan Stanley - Kate Kraus
Mullikin's Auto Body, Inc.
Paul T. Swann Farms
Preston Automotive Group
Reliable Pest Control
Reynolds Excavating, Inc.
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Russell Parks and Son Repair
Shore Sportsman
Slayden's Excavating and Hauling, LLC
Smith & Weston Construction, LLC
Spring & Associates
Talbot Hospitality/Best Western
The Burris Firm, LLC
The Christopher Foundation for Life
The Oaks
The Terrapin Group, LLC
Wagner Foodservice
Warren's Wood Works & Building Supply
West and Callahan, Inc.
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Alma Stitch Studio
Anna Fichtner
Arrae Fine Gifts & Objects
Carpenter Street Saloon
Charisma Clothing Boutique
Chesapeake Blooms
Crackerjacks
Curlicue
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Lizzy Dee
Dragonfly Boutique
J. McLaughlin
Levity & Wit
Optical Galleria
Out of the Fire
Piazza Italian Market
Shapers Salon
Shore United Bank
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Silver Linings Jewelry
Simpatico
Storm and Daughters Ice Cream
Sullivan Surgery and Spa
RUTH
Vintage Family Farms
Welcome Home
Windswept Clothiers
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Grant Partners
American Legion Blake Blackston Post #77
Bryan Brothers Foundation
Christmas in St. Michaels
Christ Church St. Michaels Parish
Christopher Foundation for Life
Church of the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church Women
Dock Street Foundation
Fullwood Foundation
Grayce B. Kerr Foundation
Maryland State Department of Education
Mid-Shore Community Foundation
MSCF Donor Advised Funds:
Cassady Family Fund FBO Critchlow Adkins, Critchlow Adkins Children's Centers Endowment, Ferree Fund, Katra Fund, Reynolds/Cristiano Fund
Philip A Zaffere Foundation
Ridgeway Family Charitable Trust
Rotary Club of Easton
Rural Maryland Council
St. John Foundation
St. Michaels After School Help
Talbot County Health Department
Van Strum Foundation
Women & Girls Fund of the Mid-Shore
Women & Girls Fund Daisy Funds
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Academy Art Museum
Adkins Arboretum
Appleseed Books
Boy Scouts of America
Candlelight Cove
Carepacks of Talbot County
Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Chesapeake College
Choptank Community Health
Cordova Fire Station
Eastern Shore Speech Therapy
Easton Cinemas
Easton Volunteer Fire Department
Emily's Produce
Environmental Concern
Family Affair Farm
For All Seasons
Girl Scouts of America
Healthy Talbot
Imagination Library of Talbot County
Judy Amdur Music
Judy Center Early Learning Hubs
Jump Start With The Arts
Lion's Club
Kiln Born Creations
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Maryland Zoo
Pickering Creek Audubon Center
Police, Fire, and EMS Departments
Positive Strides Therapeutic Riding
Project Right Steps
Ready at Five
Shore Lit
SOS Sink or Swim
Society of St. Vincent de Paul
St. Michaels Community Center
Talbot County:
Health Department
Infants and Toddlers
Oral Health Department
Parks and Recreation
Public Schools
Talbot County Free Library
Talbot Family Network
Talbot Humane
Talbot Interfaith Shelter
Talbot Thrive
University of Maryland Extension
US Armed Forces
4-H Club
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Critchlow Adkins is so fortunate to have generous support from our local business community. Meet our CACC Stars!
*For more information on how YOU can become a CACC Star, click HERE or contact our Development Director, Liz Connelly, at lconnelly@cacckids.org.
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Ball Greenhouses
Benson and Mangold Real Estate
Brambles Electric
Chesapeake Blooms
Chic-fil-A
Clark Realty, LLC
Coventry Motor Works
Crackerjacks
Dairy Queen of Denton
Dragonfly Boutique
Easton Music Academy
Foster and Son, Inc.
L. Lucke Designs
Moore Funeral Home
PeachBlossoms Events
RLE LLC
Salt & Light Entertainment
Storm & Daughters Ice Cream
Vintage Family Farms
What's Good, LLC
Windswept Clothiers
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Licensed Maryland Childcare Providers
Cordova - 45445
Easton Preschool - 31291
Easton School Age - 31294
St. Michaels - 31292
White Marsh - 53488
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