After two years of residing at 83 South Main Street, the Catherine Violet Hubbard Foundation (CVHF) has officially moved up the road to the Edmond Town Hall at 45 Main Street.

“We had no idea we were going to move,” said Jenny Hubbard, CVHF president and mother of the late Catherine Hubbard, whom the organization honors.

The office at 83 South Main Street had been a beloved spot for Ms Hubbard. It was the place the foundation was able to establish itself in the community and build positive memories.

Prior to that location, from 2013 to 2018, the foundation had been run out of Ms Hubbard’s home — specifically her kitchen table — and the off-site office space was much needed.

Now, as the group continues to grow, so have its office needs.

Ms Hubbard said that after speaking with Edmond Town Hall Operations Manager Sheila E. Torres one day, it was brought up that there was space available in the historic building.

With the lease ending on the South Main Street office, everything fell into place, making what Ms Hubbard calls a “perfect move.”

Transitioning from one building to another also proved to have the stars align, as IBM contacted CVHF around that time looking for ways they could support the foundation in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr Day.

As a result, a dozen representatives from IBM came out to volunteer their time and muscle on January 22 and, with members of CVHF, the group moved everything to its new home in just four hours.

Looking around the new location, Ms Hubbard told The Newtown Bee, “It feels good. It feels like we’ve grown up.”

The office at Edmond Town Hall not only offers more space for a great price, but it also allows for more visibility in the community.

Ms Hubbard is excited to be on Main Street in “the heart of Newtown,” citing it as the scene of the town’s famous Labor Day Parade and Halloween trick-or-treating.

The office space itself is also iconic, in that it was the former office and vault of the Town Clerk, when town offices were located within Edmond Town Hall. What once housed critical Newtown paperwork and documents now houses many kind reminders of Catherine, who was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012, and the work the foundation is doing to honor her legacy.

The room is located next to the entrance of the Edmond Town Hall, across from the Mary Hawley room. Inside the office is the scale model of what the sanctuary will look like when it is built, complete with tiny figurines of animals and buildings.

There is seating for guests, a table of merchandise for sale, desks for CVHF representatives, and plenty of much-needed storage space.

“Everything is in one spot here, and we can continue on to what the next steps will be,” Ms Hubbard said.

The CVHF’s office at Edmond Town Hall is expected to be temporary, as the group’s goal is to have the office at the actual animal sanctuary grounds, on Old Farm Road, when the building is finished.

Last spring, the foundation began construction work, but it is anticipated to take a few more years until the entire project is completed.

In the meantime, Ms Hubbard said the foundation has an “open door policy” and encourages the public to visit when there is a representative in the office. Typically, there is a member there during work hours on weekdays and every so often on weekends.

For more information about the Catherine Violet Hubbard Foundation, visit cvhfoundation.org.