History, Vision & Mission

The Parenting Cottage was founded in 1982 to serve special needs children. The original Board of Directors included Louise Cummins, Helen Lou Conner, Gloria Galey, Ed Irons, Dr. Richard Katnik, Roderick L. Shaw and Jane Tustin.

The acronym COTTAGE originally stood for Center Offering Therapy, Training, Assistance and Group Education. Originally housed in Seaman Hall through the assistance of the Episcopal Diocese, the Parenting Cottage received a generous gift from the J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation in 1985 to provide the current facility.

In 1995, a Community Task Force recommended the expansion of services to include all children and families seeking support and parent education. Home visitation services were added and in 1998 as a recipient of a community block grant services were added for at risk families. The program was recognized as a “Best Practice” program.

Programs at the Parenting Cottage have been generously supported by numerous foundations and individual donors.  For a complete list click on the Community Support page.

The Parenting Cottage is a proud Lubbock Area United Way partner agency and provides direct program services targeted at families prenatal to kindergarten entry to address a broad range of community needs.  On an annual basis, the agency serves 700-1,000 families touching and improving  the lives of 700-1,500 children.

Build a strong community by first building strong families.

Educate, advocate and provide support that helps to ensure babies are born healthy, parents have the knowledge to meet their child’s developmental needs, and children have the opportunity to grow and thrive in a safe environment arriving at kindergarten “school ready.”