Barksdale Air Force Base’s Child Development Center partners with community daycares

BOSSIER CITY, La. (KSLA) - It’s a struggle military parents know all too well: finding childcare and doing it quickly. Barksdale Air Force Base’s Child Development Center (CDC) provides childcare for ages birth to 5-years-old. Community childcare coordinator, Charlotte Lewis, specializes in helping parents find the right fit around town if the CDC isn’t available or has a waitlist.

“We have parents calling at the last minute and asking for childcare and they’re like, ‘Oh, I need childcare and it needs to start on Monday. And I’ve been calling around and I’m getting no no, no, no, no.’ And I said, ‘Okay, just relax. Let me send out my email list.’ It relieves a lot of their stress,” said Lewis.

The CDC partners with more than 130 daycares throughout the community and matches families based on their needs.

“I can tell the centers, ‘Ok, this person has infants and a 5-year-old and needs care for both’ and create a list from that. In the last year, we’ve matched up 271 families,” Lewis said.

And those matches provide relief to many military parents.

“I’ve had parents who have called in tears because maternity leave is up and they have to report back to work on Monday and they have not found care yet. It’s this community partnership has alleviated a lot of stress for a lot of first-time parents and those that are with infants,” said Lewis.

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