Founded by mother-daughter team Lynn Hawkins and Quady Simmons, Pinwheel Place is the only “crisis nursery” in the state that is designed to feel like a home.
The Monmouth County center offers free, emergency and respite childcare for children from birth to age six, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and all confidentially. Hawkins emphasized that Pinwheel Place is more than childcare, it’s part of a larger effort to prevent child abuse before it begins.
“We provide a lot of childcare for domestic abuse victims, while they are going on a job interview or even going to court to get a restraining order,” said Hawkins. “We’ve had a single parent go into the hospital and had no one to watch their kids while they were in the hospital. We have a family, one of the parents has cancer and is getting aggressive treatment, and the other one is going to work.
“They need a place to keep their kids while the other parent goes to work,” she said. “So, we are filling in the gap where traditional childcare doesn’t fill.”
Founded in 2019 and funded out of the owners’ own pockets, Pinwheel Place moved into a permanent home in 2023 in Monmouth County. The location includes age-specific rooms, an outdoor play area, private conference space for parents and storage for diaper and baby supply distribution.
Pinwheel Place also provides diaper deliveries, infant essentials and welcome baskets for new parents — all part of a wraparound approach to family support.
