Free childcare center in Pittsburgh, Jeremiah's Place, provides vital resource for parents
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Did you know that there is an emergency childcare center right in our area? It helps families who are in need of dropping off their children to be cared for - no questions asked, no fee required.
It has become a life-saving and life-changing canter and now there are plans to make it bigger.
You can feel the joy and happiness inside the gym in Jeremiah's Place located on Frankstown Avenue. The emergency childcare center is giving parents what they need when they need it.
"We can have a child for up to seven days, we're licensed for daycare and overnight, as well," said Executive Director Tammy Aupperlee. "We sometimes see a child maybe one time and never again and then we have other families on a more occasional basis."
Just last month, the U.S. Surgeon General said parental stress is an urgent public health issue that can negatively impact children.
A lack of childcare is one of those stressors and Aupperlee sees that.
"The childcare crisis is horrible," she said. "Right now, our top reason for care is workforce development. People are looking for jobs, doing job training, or they found a job and they can't find permanent childcare yet."
"I was losing my mind, it was unbelievable," added Dewayna Jamison Henry. "I was crying and praying on my knees - who is going to help me?"
Jamison Henry is the mother of three boys and found herself in a tough position after the death of her parents. She said Jeremiah's Place changed her life.
"They were family and God sent them to me and it means so much to me because I didn't have any help," she recalled.
Aupperlee said because of the care, the resources, and the ability to function 24/7, the center is looking to move to a bigger building next year.
Part of the help comes from partnerships like UPMC Health Plan.
"It will double our size and accommodate many more children," Aupperlee said.
That expansion will help meet the needs of so many families in the Pittsburgh area and beyond because there is nothing more important than the health and safety of our children.