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Stories

The cost of childcare is an enormous burden to my family. Both parents have to work but the cost of childcare ($13,000 for childcare/preschool and $3,000 for aftercare) has meant that we have fallen deeper and deeper into debt. For the past year I have been unemployed, so even though my daughter...Read more
Jennifer
Having no paid maternity leave from my waitressing job threw my husband and I into financial chaos. It was so stressful - on top of having a newborn, not even knowing how we were going to make what little savings we had last, having to stress about buying diapers and basic survival items. We had...Read more
Melissa
When my first child was about to enter preschool, we did not know what to do. We could not afford a private preschool but we also did not qualify for Head Start. We found out about a public preschool (Heritage Child Development Center) that sounded great so we called them up. They had a number of...Read more
Lisa
Being pregnant and going into labor were the scariest moments of my life. And it wasn’t because I didn’t know what to expect, or because I had watched too many movie deliveries. I was terrified because I knew, that despite living in America, one of the richest countries in the world - that it was...Read more
Lashonda, NY
Like most Americans, I do not have paid family leave. I went into labor with my son when I was at work, almost two months before his due date. My son was born at 33 weeks, by emergency C-section, and spent a month in the NICU. I used all of my vacation and sick time to be with him daily. When that...Read more
Jonna Ashley, Denver
People are often surprised to hear that even a physician can end up on Medicaid...but I’m a great example that it can happen to anyone. I’m 32 years old, married, with two small children and I am a family physician. In January of this year, right at the beginning of a new plan year and new...Read more
Robin
I have two children who are 21 months apart. From the time that my oldest started in daycare at 6 weeks of age until the time that my son finished at age 5, we were in 9 different childcare settings. Everytime I thought they were both settled, a teacher changed or they moved to the next classroom...Read more
Anne, Washington
I am a single mother of young children and I am in law school with a degree from UW. But three years ago, a single set back destabilized my entire family. A single, and rare, support payment from the father of my children temporarily put me over the income limit for my childcare subsidy. Overnight...Read more
Angelica, Seattle, WA
I was an Early Childhood Education teacher for over 25 years. Children who have been in a high quality ECE program have a major advantage when they start public or private school. ECE is crucial in developing a lifetime love of learning, socialization with other children and adults, and basics in...Read more
Pat, Utah
I was a teacher at the local high school for 7 years. When I got pregnant for the first time, I wanted to do everything...continue teaching in my FFA program AND raise a baby. Turns out it was a hard match. Adding my daughter to my health insurance was one thing (I went from paying $15/month to $...Read more
Michelle

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