It’s time. After years of leaking roofs, months of turmoil over certification and approval, and months of struggle to receive title to the property, the AJFC Community Action Agency officially broke ground Tuesday on a $3.1 million renovation project aimed at revamping and upgrading Thompson School.

The property, formerly owned by Adams County, houses the vitally important Head Start program and its more than 400 charges. And, while the program meets critical needs in our community, it has struggled with the burden of an inadequate physical structure.

This renovation project rectifies that. With funds from the Administration for Children and Families, the AJFC Community Action Agency will make a significant investment in Thompson School. More important, it is making an investment in the future of our community. While many of the youngsters who attend Head Start come from families facing economic hardships, they deserve the same opportunities to learn and grow as other children receive. Most important, they deserve a school and a facility which inspires pride, comfort and security – not the shame and dread of attending a school with a leaking roof, ill-utilized spaces and inadequate infrastructure.

The renovations should help inspire that pride in the students, employees and administrators working with AJFC at the Thompson School facility.

We congratulate them on the groundbreaking and challenge the administrators to continue to invest in the program, our community and our community’s future.