Children’s Beach House seeks grant for new windows
Children’s Beach House is hoping to replace its well-worn, 25-year-old windows and doors that take a beating from the wind, sand and salt on Lewes Beach.
Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester toured the building at 1800 Bay Ave. Aug. 13 to see for herself. Children’s Beach House has requested a $500,000 federal grant to pay for about half of the window replacement project.
“There is a real need here. It is a beautiful facility, but has outdated windows and doors,” Blunt Rochester said.
Phase 1 of the capital improvement project would cover windows and doors on the bay side of the building, according to Rich Garrett, CBH executive director. He said the second phase would cover the street side.
The money for the project would come from congressionally directed spending. Blunt Rochester said the Senate recently passed a Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bill that includes $75 million in federal investments for Delaware.
She said it is now up to the House to pass a separate bill this fall that would contain money for CBH.
“I don’t think there is any greater community need than to make sure that our children are safe, educated and have opportunities, especially those with special needs,” Blunt Rochester said.
Garrett said CBH is also raising money for after-school programs for students with communicative disabilities at Milton Elementary and H.O. Brittingham Elementary, each of which will start in September.
The program can accommodate 140 students, 70 in each school, he said.
The mission of Children’s Beach House is to improve the lives of children, youth, families and communities by helping them to identify, understand and utilize their own strengths, talents and resources. The Margaret H. Rollins Child Development Center provides children with speech and language delays a language-rich environment alongside their typically developing peers, where they all learn skills necessary for success in kindergarten and elementary school. The Youth Development Program helps children, youth, families and communities build safe, supportive environments and long-term relationships that provide the opportunities, resources and confidence to develop their natural skills and talents.
The story of Children’s Beach House began in 1936 when Lydia Chichester duPont rented a cottage in Lewes to bring children with orthopedic challenges to the beach to experience the same healing qualities she found there as a child. Children’s Beach House was officially founded as a charity in 1937, and duPont purchased property to build CBH in 1938.
For more information or to donate, go to cbhinc.org.
Bill Shull has been covering Lewes for the Cape Gazette since 2023. He comes to the world of print journalism after 40 years in TV news. Bill has worked in his hometown of Philadelphia, as well as Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He came to Lewes in 2014 to help launch WRDE-TV. Bill served as WRDE’s news director for more than eight years, working in Lewes and Milton. He is a 1986 graduate of Penn State University. Bill is an avid aviation and wildlife photographer, and a big Penn State football, Eagles, Phillies and PGA Tour golf fan. Bill, his wife Jill and their rescue cat, Lucky, live in Rehoboth Beach.
