“I felt hope”: New McKenzie Preschool Means More than Child Care to Upriver Community
Children playing in the preschool room at the McKenzie Little Eagles Child Care center on March 23.
The McKenzie Child Care center is located on the grounds of the McKenzie Elementary School in Blue River.
A child at the McKenzie Child Care center smiles as she holds a clown book up to her face and peers through to make it look like she is wearing clown makeup.
Last Thursday, March 23, the McKenzie Little Eagles Child Care center hosted an open house, offering community members and prospective parents the chance to tour their new facility in Blue River. For a community that’s weathered devastating challenges the last few years, the center offers more than simply child care - it stands as a symbol of resilience and hope.
The Need IN Mckenzie river
Lane County is considered a child care desert, with only 16 child care slots for every 100 children. The McKenzie Child Care center, located on the grounds of the McKenzie Elementary School, will be the only licensed center for 67 miles of highway, with the nearest centers in Thurston to the west and Sisters to the east.
The need for child care in the McKenzie River area became even more pressing following the onset of the pandemic and the Holiday Farm Fire in September 2020. Many home-based child care centers in the McKenzie area were forced to close during this time. “After the fire, it became very clear to us that we were going to need to provide some form of child care in order to retain and recruit new families,” said Lacey Joy, McKenzie School District Special Programs Coordinator in an interview with KEZI. To help support these child care efforts, United Way of Lane County invested $50,000 in 2022 to help launch the center, as part of its larger wildfire recovery grants.
More than child care
For many community members, the center represents more than child care opportunities. In a small, rural community like Blue River, access to employment can be limited.
Lacey Joy (left) poses for a photo with Child Care Sector Strategist Holly Mar-Conte (center) and McKenzie School District Superintendent Lane Tompkins (right), during the McKenzie Child Care open house on March 23.
“Being able to offer [the child care center] is huge – not just for the families using the service, but for the families that I was able to hire and bring in to work here. We were able to bring in 6 new employees, which is huge for this community.”
Consistent child care can be a major factor in a family’s ability to work outside the home. This in turn impacts an employer’s decision to move to or keep their business in the area. “From the employer side, we know that child care is the work that makes all other work possible and employers are struggling across the board with employees' absenteeism, productivity, recruitment and retention,” said Holly Mar-Conte, the Child Care Sector Strategist with Onward Eugene.
For many in the McKenzie area, the new child care center represents their community’s resilience. Two and a half years after the Holiday Farm Fire, recovery efforts continue, with organizations like the McKenzie Valley Long Term Recovery Group still working to connect residents to resources. The McKenzie Child Care center offers a glimpse of what the community can achieve. “When I walked through [the center], I felt hope,” said one McKenzie Elementary teacher.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to be a part of this community, to be able to work here, to bring Cedar with me to work, and to be a support for the families that I see here. I think this child care center is going to give a lot of opportunity for the community to work and to help rebuild.”
McKenzie Child Care Director Jessica Marie poses for a picture with some of the children who will be attending the center, including her son, Cedar (far left).
The new McKenzie Little Eagles Child Care center will officially open on April 3, and will be able to accommodate 40 kids.
The McKenzie Little Eagles Child Care Center is supported by The Ford Family Foundation, Oregon Community Foundation, Meyer Memorial Trust, United Way of Lane County, the Roundhouse Foundation, the John and Ginger Neimeyer Foundation, and Lane County, as well as United Way donors who’ve given to United Way’s Wildfire Response Fund.
Learn more about United Way’s efforts to alleviate the child care crisis, such as Onward Eugene’s Child Care Sector Strategist, through our blog post here.
For more information about child care resources in Lane County, visit the Early Childhood Hub of Lane County.
A child enjoys the new sinks in the McKenzie Child Care center, which are perfect height for him to wash his hands unassisted.
Three generations of this McKenzie area family have all attended McKenzie Elementary School from Kindergarten on. Now, they’re excited to enroll their two youngest in Kindergarten and the new McKenzie Child Care center.
A child giggles as she drinks from her juice box at the McKenzie Little Eagles open house on March 23.