Child Care Campaign

GIVE TOWARDS A BETTER TOMORROW

The Penobscot Bay YMCA’s licensed child care program provides quality care for families with children ages six weeks to five years at our three locations in Rockport and Rockland. Our program has earned the highest level rating from Maine’s Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) and is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Our caring staff provides a nurturing, safe environment for young children to grow and thrive. In 2024, we served over 160 young children and their families.

The Y is the largest provider of child care in Knox County, and we are also one of the most equitable. We provide year-round, full-day care from 7A until 5P, which is critical for working parents. We accept Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) state subsidies so that families in need can attend our program, and we do this even though the subsidy payments from the state do not fully cover our expenses. We also offer Y financial assistance to families who do not qualify for state subsidies, ensuring that no child is turned away from our program due to the inability to pay. 

Today, like many providers across the country, we are facing numerous challenges to the sustainability of our program, including growing wait lists, staff shortages, and operating deficits. Families in our community are struggling to find quality care for their young children because child care providers are closing, and this is creating a ripple effect on our local economy. Between 2020 and 2022, the number of licensed providers in Maine dropped by 280. Many shutdown because it has become difficult to retain qualified staff, who are able to earn higher wages in the retail, food service and hospitality sectors. Unlike public schools and universities, early child care is not publicly funded. This means that the rising costs of care for infants and toddlers are passed directly to hardworking parents. Infant care in Maine now costs more than in-state tuition to public universities. Child care is an industry facing collapse because child care workers need to earn a living wage and many working parents can’t afford to pay more for care.

Source: NY Times

Our Child Care Campaign 

In order to address these challenges, we launched our Child Care Campaign to expand and fund our infant and young toddler programs. This Campaign will allow us to sustain our high quality programs for infants and toddlers, pay our teachers competitive wages, and offer much needed financial assistance to families who do not qualify for Maine’s state subsidy programs. 

Lily Pond Infant Center

Thanks to generous supporters and state funding, we were proud to expand our programming to open the Lily Pond Infant Care Center in October 2023, answering the dire need for child care in our area. In 2024, this new center served 31 infants, allowing desperate families to return to the workforce and increasing access to full-day, affordable care. Infant care requires a ratio of 1 staff to 4 babies. This means that almost every child care provider runs their infant and young toddler programs at a financial loss. Funding from the Child Care Campaign is currently underwriting the operating gap between what it costs to run this Center and what we receive in parent fees. Donations to the Child Care Campaign will allow us to keep care affordable for families and fund financial assistance for those in need.

Child Care Families Rely On The Y!

Access to quality, affordable child care is critical to our local economy. The Y’s Child Care Program makes a significant impact on many working families as expressed by Reagan, a child care mom. “From the moment I stepped into the Y’s Child Care Center three years ago, I knew this was much more than filling a need. It wasn’t just the light from the huge windows and open, colorful space, it was the tender and thoughtful reception from, well, everyone, whose actions said “It’s ok mom, your child is safe with me.” And then the pandemic began. As a nurse, staying home was not an option and the Y creatively, safely and responsibly kept their doors open for me to continue working as an essential worker. Our experience here is beyond amazing, not just because of swim lessons, play gym, sledding parties, and field trips. It’s the creative, inspiring, tireless teachers who are laying the foundation for thoughtful, caring, little humans. They say you find your people when your child starts school and I am beyond grateful for the special bonds of friendship we have made here.”     

Become a Child Care Supporter

We invite you to invest in working families by becoming an advocate for affordable child care and making a contribution to our Child Care Campaign. Your contribution will allow us to serve local families with young children and to keep our programs affordable by underwriting the operating costs of our infant and young toddler programs. Please make a secure online gift today or contact us at development@penbaymca.org to discuss a Gift of Stock or a Bequest. Thank you!