A family photo of Elizabeth Tomev with her husband and two daughters.

Elizabeth Tomev, Wisconsin

Before I had children, the importance of daycare didn’t weigh heavily on my mind. I didn’t realize how stressful it would be to try to find the right child care. I never knew how costly it would be.

My children are eight and five. Child care has been a godsend. My husband and I both work and we need daycare to be able to keep our jobs. But it goes beyond just a place to watch our kids during the day. Child care provides my children with the chance to learn, to socialize with others their own age, and to have healthy meals.

Our family started to search for child care when we had just moved to Wisconsin. My husband and I didn’t know anyone, and we could not blindly trust just anyone. I wanted a place that was reputable, but there are so few options in our area.

I wondered what I would do if I couldn’t find a place for my children. It’s a very real possibility in the area that we live in in Wisconsin. In fact, the first year we moved here, we had to send our children to two different child care centers because we couldn’t find a daycare with spots for both age groups. From what I hear, this is the case throughout much of the state. I had a lot of sleepless nights. And I also worried about the cost. Child care is not easily affordable. Our family has two working parents, and we struggle as it is. I can’t imagine what someone does in a single parent household, or is just trying to make ends meet. For many, a year of daycare equals or exceeds a parent’s annual income.

The lack of child care options and the high costs can prevent women from being able to hold jobs, and from being part of the workforce. Early on, we tried daycare when I went back to work after my oldest was born, but it made no sense to send her. The cost of daycare was equal to my income. I was paying my whole salary for someone else to watch, play with, and teach my child. If quality child care was more available and affordable, both parents and the community would benefit. If one parent has to stay home with the children, that’s a loss of workforce in the area and a loss of income for that family–and in the end a financial loss for the community.

I’ve gained a sense of how much it takes to run a daycare center and to pay the teachers well. Some child care centers barely make enough to keep the doors open. So, not only does child care need to be more affordable, but on the opposite end, we need to fund it better so the teachers get paid their worth. I think we need to make working in child care a more positive job option. We have many amazing teachers out there who care for children from the bottom of their hearts, but there is a shortage. I think we should provide for them and show that they are valued, and then more people would be interested in this profession and it will grow.

Child care providers are really giving their all. They should have as much support behind them as possible because they’re the ones who are helping in this important role for our families, children, and communities. Better funding for child care will only make our communities stronger.

I want everyone to recognize the value of what child care brings, whether you have children or not. Child care is so much more than babysitting. I want people to realize child care is part of building a community and strengthening the workforce. Caring for children is worthy of people’s attention, it is worthy of funding, and should be a priority for a community hoping to thrive.

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Interview and writing completed by Danika Laine Brubaker. A collaboration of Kids Forward, Supporting Families Together Association, Wisconsin Head Start Association, and Wisconsin Early Childhood Association supported by Voices for Healthy Kids policy campaign and the American Heart Association.