By Vivian Carrasco
Military.com Contributing Writer

Many military spouses find themselves attempting to find solutions to the child care dilemma. Luckily, the military is an environment working diligently towards being friendly to families.

Let's walk through a spouse's recent experience searching for child care and some of the different options that are available.

Lori is a young newlywed who recently left a management position because of a PCS to Fort Campbell, Kentucky. She has decided to pursue an, "educational foundation to build on her work experience." Lori has developed a SMART goal accompanied by a great plan to accomplish it. She is now registered for a full load of classes at a local University with the financial help of a Fort Campbell Military Spouse Scholarship. Lori's husband is currently away at Ranger school and she expects him to deploy in the fall. Married to an infantryman in the 101st means that finding dependable and quality childcare was at the top of her to do list. She's the typical military spouse, eager, motivated and resourceful so her first question was, "Where do I start and what's available?"

If you live close enough to a military installation you'll find high quality care with Department of Defense's (DoD) on base child development programs. It's the largest employer supported childcare program in the nation and their sliding fee scale makes this one of the best financial options for all service members and their families. Lori found this to be exactly what her young children needed.

There are many types of youth and child care options designed to meet your child's needs. Here are some helpful links based on service:

Army, Child & Youth Services

Navy, Navy Child Development

Air Force, Family Member Programs

Marine Corps, Children, Youth and Teen Programs

A new DoD initiative for geographically dispersed families called Military Child Care in your neighborhood was recently launched. This initiative will help military families find and pay for childcare in their community. Call the Child Care Aware hotline at 1-800-424-2246 to determine if you are eligible or visit the NACCRRA website.

If none of the above options fit in with your current situation consider either in-home care or a parent babysitting co-op. In-home care is provided in your home by an adult caregiver, usually less than 20 hours a week or you must meet federal wage and benefits requirements. A parent babysitting cooperative usually involves a group of families sharing child care; this was the most popular option for part-time care during my husband's last deployment

Lori is enthusiastic about starting school and positive about reaching her goal. Remember that your career will have some of the same natural rest stops, detours and even exits into new occupations. It's a lifelong road, after all.

Being a military spouse poses some challenges but keeping your eyes on the horizon will help you to keep a clear perspective and stay on course.

© 2005 Vivian Carrasco. All rights reserved.

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