A couple of the youngsters gripped pencils in their little hands, focusing for all their worth on the task at hand, others, less so.

The children all attend the Central Texas Children’s Center in Temple, a United Way Agency.

The center got its start in 1953 in response to the polio epidemic and was an Easter Seal Center that provided free services, according to Dr. Anne Lueck, Central Texas Children’s Center director.

The center’s mission has evolved over the years and is now to provide educational, habilitative and social programs to children and their siblings who have been identified as having special needs.

The center serves children with mental, physical and emotional issues and prepares these youngsters to enter public school kindergarten, Lueck said. There is an after-school program for children up to the age of 13.

The staff includes several teachers who have taught at the center for more than 20 years and none expect to get rich from their salaries, she said.

“They do it because they love the children,” Lueck said.

Martin has taught school for 26 years, 20 at the Children’s Center.

“I enjoy watching them learn … watching them grow,” she said. “When they learn something new they just light up.”

Martin proudly talked about one of her students who has shown great progress.

“He has learned so much, he’s come such a long way,” Martin said.

Funding for the center comes from parent fees, bingo and other fundraisers, and the United Way of Central Texas, which is currently holding its fundraising campaign.

Because the former director Joe Dickson was sick last year, the center wasn’t able to do much fundraising and is now financially strapped, she said. Dickson, who ran the center for 15 years, died in June.

As luck would have it, when problems arise, financial and otherwise, it seems assistance is not far behind, Lueck said.

“God blesses us in a lot of ways if we quietly listen,” she said.

The center has received a grant from the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation to redo its playground, which is out of compliance.

Parents learn about the center from other day care centers and referrals come from the Children With Special Needs Network, physicians and Child Care Services with Central Texas Workforce.

Lueck, who became director during the summer, said she’s never seen a more inclusive attitude among teachers than those who work at Central Texas Children’s Center.

A child is just a child and it makes no difference if one child is more difficult to handle than another, she said.

“It’s fascinating to watch because I’ve been in situations where inclusion is a real headache - here it’s a way of life,” Lueck said.

Lueck said the center would like to expand services to children with special needs beyond the day care.

One program that is being considered is a program for older children because there are few places for this group to go after school.

“There is an interest in the center across Bell County and there are a lot of needs across Bell County for children with special needs,” Lueck said. “We’re uniquely positioned to address those needs.”

The center needs some work, she said, but the priority now is to serve its students.

“We have a vision for a place that Central Texas can be proud to support and serve a unique niche that nobody else is prepared to do,” Lueck said.

Lueck has a timeline of five years to achieve the vision, but Patti Hilliard, the business manager, expects a quicker resolution.