A new endeavor to offer expanded childcare options and a coworking space in Leelanau County is in the beginning stages, however, there’s already a large backing of support to make the idea a reality.
Kendall Rose of Cedar, a mother of two young children herself, became a parent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Living in a rural area significantly impacted her experiences in young motherhood and the parenting journey, where she was faced with several childcare gaps that affected both of her kids. It was in this period of Rose’s life that she began to envision a childcare model that would have supported her family’s needs in the early parenting years.
“It’s incredibly exciting. I do have a lot of friends and peers in the area with similarly aged kids, and a lot of them are so supportive of this idea,” Rose said. “There’s also just quite a bit of small business owners, particularly for the small business community, and they realize if you don’t have the support for family structures, you’re going to have a really tricky time retaining talent in the area, starting new businesses, and being able to just support families through all of these life stages that affect them from pregnancy all the way through until their kids can go to elementary school… that’s a long five year planning phase for families.”
