Missouri child care deserts include nearly half of kids 5 and under, new data shows
At five months pregnant, Kayla Marmaud started putting her name on waiting lists for child care.
But when her son was born in late 2021, she still hadn’t heard from any daycares. As her maternity leave drew to a close, Marmaud found herself in waitlist limbo.
Leaving the workforce was not an option financially for her or her husband, James. Grandparents were unavailable, and even unlicensed at-home daycares were full. So they contorted their schedules around one another, hurrying out the door when the other entered. She spent the days working as an administrative assistant at a local nonprofit, and her husband worked night and weekend shifts in restaurant management.
The makeshift arrangement ended last August, when one year after entering the waitlists, Marmaud finally found a spot for her then-eight-month-old son in a local daycare.
“Our family was able to navigate the time between my return to work and getting a spot,” she said. “Not all families have that luxury.”
Read more at missouriindependent.com