ROCKPORT — More than 70 guests attended the Penobscot Bay YMCA’s party at Pascal Hall on Saturday, June 3, a fundraiser to expand and underwrite the Y’s child care programs for infants and little toddlers. The focus of the event was to raise awareness about the regional child care crisis, which has been compounded by the pandemic and a competitive job market. 

Y Board Member Annemarie Ahearn spoke about the importance of the Y child care to her own family and how long waitlists are preventing parents who want to work from getting back to their careers. Y supporter Ariel Hall spoke to the quality of the program and its focus on equitable access to care for all families.

The Y is the largest provider of child care in the county, and their two centers in Rockland and Rockport hold a 5 star rating on Maine’s quality rating system, QRIS. They accept DHHS subsidy and also offer financial assistance to families who do not quality for DHHS, making it an inclusive and accessible program. 

CEO Whitney Files spoke about how the Y has been working to retain teachers by raising wages and improving benefit packages. However, the rising costs are resulting in operating deficits for the infant and little toddler classrooms, which have a low teacher to baby ratio of 1 to 4.

“We are not alone in this struggle,” said Files. “From 2020 to 2022, the number of licensed child care providers in Maine dropped by 280. We are reaching out to our generous community to help us underwrite the growing gap between what it costs to run our quality programs and the fees that most families can afford to pay.”

Files shared that the Y’s 2022 campaign had raised over $150k to expand their child care programs by 20%. As a result, the Y is currently renovating space in their Lily Pond building at 120 Union Street to include a new Infant Center, which should open later this year.

“The funds we raise tonight and throughout this year will allow us to open and operate the new Lily Pond Center and to support our infant and little toddler program in Rockland,” she said. “We are hopeful that community support will allow us to hold our fees steady in 2024 and not have to raise our rates higher. It is extremely hard to be a working parent or guardian right now and the Y wants to do everything we can to support our families.”

Local cover band Minivan Carpool played two upbeat sets in the intimate venue; space was donated by the Lesher Family Foundation. The event was sponsored by CedarWorks and Salt Water Farm.

At the Y, we are for youth development, healthy living and social responsibility.

To make a gift to support  Y’s child care programs for infants and little toddlers, please visit penbayymca.org, click the Donate button and choose "Child Care Campaign" from the drop down menu. Thank you for your generosity.