PULASKI, Va. – Starting at the end of September, the Calfee Community and Cultural Center will be open and crawling with kids.
“The building sat dormant for so many years,” said Dr. Mickey Hickman, board president for the Calfee Community and Cultural Center and alumnus of Calfee Training School. “I would feel a little sadness because I just thought this was the greatest building .”
The building known originally as Calfee Training School has been part of the community since the late 1930s.
Built as the school for Black Americans living in the area, it served the community up until de-segregation in the 60s.
“I’m Old Testament, I actually attended this school in the mid-50s to the early 60s,” said Hickman. “I went here for elementary school, grades one through seven.”
Now, they are working to revitalize this building to preserve its history and give back to the community.
The building will be a place for childcare, but also a museum, community kitchen and a future computer lab.
“It really became clear that there was a future for the school that incorporated not just a childcare center [but] a museum that would really give space for remembering this really remarkable, national significant history,” said Jill Williams, co-executive director for the community center.
They said it will also be affordable with scholarships and different payment options for families.
“While we are a childcare desert, one thing we have plenty of in Pulaski are empty buildings,” said Williams. “We said let’s see if we can find a building that would be an optimal building to repurpose.”
Hickman said as someone who went to the school, it’ll be special to see children back in the building, but this time it’ll serve the entire community.
They said while they are opening Sept. 28, the renovations are coming in waves, and right now they are putting the finishing touches on the first wave.