DESHLER, Neb. (KOLN) – Reinke Manufacturing employs around 400 people near Deshler, a town of nearly 800 residents.
To address the shortage of childcare options and prevent families from leaving, a board of five volunteers created Spring Creek Kids, a childcare center that has been open for two months.
Grace Anderson, a teacher in Deshler with an eight-month-old daughter, drives out of town for childcare every day, spending gas money and an hour on the road before work.
“We were looking at other jobs and looking at possibly staying at home and just how we were going to make it work without having childcare here in town,” Anderson said.
Her struggle was far from unique.
In 2022, five board members decided to create a childcare center and support local in-home providers, many of whom were already full.
“We want to be there to be able to support them in that decision, so they don’t feel like …