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BlueOval City is Ford’s big EV production center under development in Tennessee. It is basically where the future of Ford Motor Company is being built. As the name implies, it is not just a factory, but a broad and diverse center or “city.” It reminds me a bit of the gigantic employment services Google and some other Silicon Valley companies created to provide employees with all kinds of services and facilities — and to keep them at work longer.
The latest news from BlueOval is that it has a new YMCA Early Learning Center that can provide care for up to 175 children, and will also provide care for school-age kids during school breaks. In other words, “Stay at work, we got this.” Serving up to 175 kids, from 6 months to 5 years in age, the YMCA center will serve the whole region.
In addition to care during the workday, the YMCA Early Learning Center will also provide before-school and afterschool programs, including meals, for school-age children.
“Ford collaborated with the YMCA to gather input from residents, shape the development of the facility and bring together key investors for this project,” the company writes.
While we don’t have details on that yet, I’m sure it will also include EV charging facilities.
“Access to high-quality affordable childcare is one of the most important components in workforce development,” said Ermal Faulkner, Ford site director for BlueOval City and electric vehicle sites. “We spent months listening and learning from local families as we designed a childcare center that will help improve the quality of life for employees, Tennessee College of Applied Technology students and other community members.”
In total, $7 million is coming from public and private sources to support the facility’s construction and operation. That includes “$1 million to offset the cost of childcare for Ford’s Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center employees and cover the cost of water and wastewater depreciation expenses funded by Ford’s Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center at BlueOval City.”
“BlueOval City sits in an area where access to childcare has been especially challenging following the pandemic,” said Dave Bratcher, senior vice president of West Tennessee for the YMCA of Memphis & the Mid-South.
“The YMCA is committed to increasing access to healthy lifestyles, resulting in stronger families and communities,” added Jerry Martin, president and CEO, YMCA of Memphis & the Mid-South. “We are grateful for the opportunity to expand access and meet the needs for families and communities throughout West Tennessee.”
Overall, it’s just nice to see the company and its partners and supporters working to create good facilities for employees’ children and whole families. It’s not exactly the norm of the day to care for others and help provide basic family needs. But it’s clearly important to Ford. Maybe it really is about keeping employees at work and helping them to be more focused at work. Nonetheless, it’s a good-news story in a week that deserves it and a month that needs it.
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