Operation Child Care
Washington, DC - May 12, 2004 - NACCRRA, the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, announced today the launch of their national initiative, Operation Child Care, a voluntary effort of NACCRRA, local Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies and child care providers to provide a few hours of free child care for National Guard and Reserve personnel returning for two weeks of rest and recuperation leave from Iraq and Afghanistan. The announcement was made during a press event co-hosted by Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), chair of the Subcommittee for Children and Families, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.
Operation Child Care is led by NACCRRA in partnership with the National Association of Family Child Care, the National Child Care Association, the National Cooperative Extension System, the National 4-H Program, and the Child Care Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Bright Horizons Family Solutions and KinderCare Learning Centers, representing thousands of their child care centers across the country are also participating. “The child care community’s response to Operation Child Care has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Linda Smith, Executive Director of NACCRRA. “All of us – at the national, state and local levels – are united in our desire to give back to those risking their lives to keep us safe.”
Child care providers and trained 4-H youth in cities and towns across the country are being recruited by local Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies to support the “citizen soldiers” from their local communities. Child care providers who meet state and local child care regulations will provide four or more hours of free child care so that service members can attend to family business or take their spouses out for a date. Operation Child Care was designed by NACCRRA for National Guard and Reserve personnel because they do not typically have access to the military family support programs provided to active duty personnel. Child care providers who volunteer their time for Operation Child Care will receive official recognition. But most seem to feel the same as Linda Kitzmiller, a state licensed and nationally accredited family child care provider from Washington County, Tennessee, “You don’t have to recognize me – I am just thrilled and honored to be able to do something to help our troops.” Adds Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services, Dr. Wade Horn, "I am so proud of America's child care providers. Every day they do one of the most important jobs in America. Now, they are giving even more by volunteering their time, energy, and assistance to help National Guard and Reserve personnel when these heroes come home for a few days for a well deserved break."
National Guard and Reserve members with valid military identification and leave orders will be able to access Operation Child Care services by calling NACCRRA’s national Child Care Aware® hotline, 1-800-424-2246, or by visiting the Web site at www.ChildCareAware.org. Service members will be connected to the local Child Care Resource and Referral Agency in their community who will link them to participating child care providers.
Any child care provider who meets state and local child care regulations and wants to volunteer is welcome and encouraged to participate in Operation Child Care by calling the Child Care Aware® hotline or their local Child Care Resource and Referral Agency.
About Child Care Resource and Referral: Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies help families find, select, and pay for child care, as well as provide training and support to child care providers and help communities and states meet their child care and parenting needs. Through the Child Care Aware® program, funded through a cooperative agreement with the Child Care Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, nearly half a million families each year are connected to their community Child Care Resource and Referral agencies through the national hotline and Web site, www.ChildCareAware.org.
About NACCRRA: Child Care Aware® and Operation Child Care are two of NACCRRA’s many initiatives to improve the development and learning of all children by providing leadership and support to state and community Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies and promoting national policies and partnerships that facilitate universal access to quality child care. NACCRRA is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., representing a network of more than 850 state and local Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies across the country. To find out more information about NACCRRA, go to www.naccrra.org.
