16/03/2026
On Saturday, Cuddlepie proudly celebrated 40 years in our community. 🎉
For those who may not know, Cuddlepie is a not-for-profit, community-based long day care service and registered charity. Over the past 40 years we have welcomed many children and families through our doors, continuing to provide a place where children can learn, grow, and feel a true sense of belonging.
It was wonderful to see so many of our families and members of the wider community come together to support our small service. A special thank you to Rotary, who generously donated their time and facilities to cook our sausage sandwiches, as well as Tsunami Coffee and the McDonald’s Travelling Farm, who helped make the day so memorable for everyone. ☕🐐
We would also like to thank the local businesses who kindly contributed to the day:
• Coles Wingham for the generous $50 gift voucher
• Coles Taree for the $40 gift voucher
• Snow and Sons for the delicious sausages 🌭
• Kat’s Cakes for the bread that helped feed our community
• Good360 for providing discounted items that we were able to share with families
I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to Mave Richardson for joining us in the celebration. Mave has been a passionate community advocate who worked closely with the local council 40 years ago to secure grants that helped fund the establishment of our service. She played an important role in supporting the creation of a long day care service and was a strong advocate for enabling women to participate in the workforce. Also, a special thanks to Allison Penfold for visiting our service and seeing first-hand the special little community we have built here.
I would also like to recognise our incredible team of educators and staff. It takes a very special and patient person to work with children, and our team demonstrates this every single day. Their dedication, care, and commitment are what truly make Cuddlepie such a special place.
Many of our current staff have been with the service for a significant number of years, with one educator celebrating 20 years of service late last year. I myself, have been with Cuddlepie for 14 years, you might even say Cuddlepie has become my second home. ❤️
To me, Cuddlepie is more than just a job, it is something I am deeply passionate about, especially when it comes to giving back to our community. I will continue working closely with our committee and team to access grants, project-manage improvements, and ensure we deliver a program that provides a warm, welcoming, and safe space for all children and families for many years to come.
Here’s to the next chapter of Cuddlepie. 💛
✨ Fun fact: Cuddlepie has a sister service in Taree called Snugglepot. Although the two services no longer have formal ties, both were originally run by the local council before being gifted back to the community. Their names came from a local naming competition, inspired by the much-loved Australian characters Snugglepot and Cuddlepie.
