Eileen Pelletier is a parent of two young daughters, ages 3 and 1. She is employed as a server at a local restaurant. She is rapidly becoming self-sufficient, which she credits to enrolling her children in Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care.

Proposed federal and state budget cuts to Head Start programs could hinder Pelletier’s efforts to remain self-sufficient.

“The birth of my second child is what brought me to Head Start,” Pelletier said as she told her story. “I did not want my older daughter to feel replaced or lost in her family. It was important for me to fill her needs, and to have her interacting and learning with children her own age. So I contacted Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care. They helped me enroll her into the part-day program at Hillview.”

Pelletier was also able to enroll the baby into the home-based Head Start program, getting access to information about child care and early education.

“At the first Parent Policy Council meeting I attended, I learned about the Work Ready training program from Jim Baumer, director of the Workforce Investment Board. I enrolled and completed the training program. I had my first interview at the restaurant, and was hired,” she said.

“Head Start then transitioned my children into the full-day pre-kindergarten and child care and the early Head Start programs so I could accept the position.”

Pelletier’s story is not uncommon of parents with children enrolled at Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care. Lower-income families struggle daily to make ends meet.

With costs rising for everything from food to rent, having to make the choice between working and affordable and trustworthy child care is a dilemma for many. A job paying minimum wage at 40 hours a week is $300 per week, gross. If you are paying child care for a child age 3 to 5, the average weekly cost in Androscoggin County is $125 per child. By comparison, at Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care, this same family will have to pay approximately $18 per child for full-day, full-year pre-kindergarten and child care program.

Funding cuts to national and state Head Start budgets risk the employability of many parents. Those employed in entry-level positions may not have the income available to cover both the high cost of child care and basic necessities, such as food, transportation and shelter.

Head Start’s pre-kindergarten and child care programs do not simply benefit a child and the family; they benefit local businesses that employ our parents, and rely on them to be dependable and feel safe that their children are being well-cared-for.

We recently surveyed parents in one of our pre-kindergarten and child care centers (two classrooms, enrolling 36 children, ages 3 to 5). We asked if they were working or continuing their education, which are both mandated requirements for children to be enrolled in this program. Twenty-seven parents were working full time and three parents were enrolled in local colleges full time (several parents have multiple children in the classrooms). These parents are able to continue working or furthering their educations because they know their children are in an affordable, safe, nurturing, educational environment preparing them to be successful in kindergarten.

Head Start parents can be anyone — your co-workers, your neighbors, your friends. These families have all struggled at one point in their lives, but with help they have created better lives for themselves and their children.

Past and current parents working in the community include teachers, social service employees, medical assistants and nurses, call center workers, insurance agents, a CEO of a credit union, law enforcement personnel, real estate brokers; the list goes on. If budget cuts occur, these parents may not be able to continue their employment because they will no longer have access to quality, affordable child care.

Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care is in the business of early education and child care, though we are also in the business of assisting families to grow, learn and advocate for themselves and their children.

Early education has been proven to lower future crime rates while strengthening the economy. Focusing on early childhood education is essential if we are to achieve long-term desired outcomes for Maine’s children, including high school graduation and the attainment of a college degree.

Early education, and the families who need it, must be supported so that they may continue to work as productive members of society, further their education and live out their dreams.

Maine’s state and federal representatives must support working families and their children by voting against funding cuts to Head Start and all early care and education programs.

Estelle Rubinstein is executive director of Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care in Lewiston.