WELCOME

Kelly Tregillus, one of the co-founders, moved to Durango from San Francisco in 2016 and was disappointed to see the lack of support and space in Durango to take her, then, 9 month old daughter to meet other moms or unwind in a child friendly cafe. She also worked from home and found the change to remote work a little isolating at times, prompting her to work from coffeeshops several days a week for a change of pace. 

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Not prepared to move to Durango, Kelly's daughter was not on any childcare lists, therefore, she had to patch together a nanny, mother in law and a 2 day per week childcare center to continue working. If any of those options weren't available, she had to try to work (distracted!!) and attempt to poorly supervise her daughter. That and the isolation from other parents and families lead to the concept of Durango Cafe au Play.

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Liza Tregillus, the other co-founder is a mother of four, now adult, children. After moving to Durango from Chicago with her two oldest boys, then 5 and 1 years old, she missed the family daycare co-op she had led in the city. Liza quickly found her niche at the Mother's Center of Durango (now called The Family Centers Coalition) and experienced first hand how a sense of community can enhance a family's ability to thrive in Durango.

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The Problem...

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New and expecting parents in La Plata county have limited convenient local resources or spaces to take classes or meet new friends. There is a lack of support for families of young children and most cafes are not baby or toddler friendly.

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Our indoor and outdoor facilities provide engaging play space for parents and children to meet each other and form a community. Isolation is such a big challenge across the country and we're focused on helping families make those connections.

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Meet our founding team, Kelly and Liza!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet Kelly!

Kelly is a Fort Lewis Alum with a background in business development, account management and sales. She works remotely at home for a company based in San Francisco, California. Kelly is a Board Member and acting in an advisory role to the Cafe along with volunteering her time to help with cafe operations.

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Meet Liza!

Liza, MSW, is a local Parent/Youth Coach and Play Therapist. Liza was previously the Director at the Family Centers Coalition of Durango where many parents were involved as peer leaders for play groups, parenting classes and other activities.

 

Liza has over 30 years of experience in health and human services and is responsible for developing the Durango Cafe au Play space and group calendar. Liza will offer training to volunteer parents interested in leading groups and coordinates cafe activities. She is also available for community resource and referral information.

 

In addition, Liza coordinates a peer mentor project for youth living with challenging health conditions (epilepsy, diabetes, autism, TBI, depression, etc). Liza leads peer support groups for their parents as well as coordinating teens and young adults that mentor others. Her passion is peer support, and she is excited that the Cafe au Play space is an incubator for connection. The cafe hosts parents of young children during the day, and older youth activities in the evenings.