Sheila Anzlovar, Program Director

Every year thousands of American women (almost all women!) make the decision to become a family child care provider.  It’s an important decision to take on a job that is not easy. Our society often does not appreciate and recognize the valuable work that child care providers do. But, being a family child care provider is also very rewarding! Caring for children from other families in your home is a wonderful job with many benefits.

First, you have the opportunity to stay home and care for your own children while earning money to support your own family.  Second, your work will make a big difference in improving the lives of the young children in your care.  And lastly, you will provide an invaluable service to your community by allowing parents of young children to work and support their own family. 

By being a family child care provider you will have access to a variety of resources and services to support your business. These include training workshops to help you learn more about caring for children and grants and other incentives to improve the quality of your care.

There are also some major tax advantages of being a family child care provider:

• You will be eligible to participate on the Child and Adult Care Food Program. This federal program will pay you between $550-$1,100 a year per child for serving nutritious food. This is a major source of income for the family child care provider.
• You must report as income all the money you receive caring for children. But, you can also deduct many business expenses such as food, toys, supplies and many household items. You can also deduct expenses associated with your home (rent, property tax, mortgage interest, utilities, house insurance and more). These expenses will significantly reduce your income and keep your taxes low.
• The profit you earn caring for children will help make you eligible to receive Social Security benefits when you retire.

Before you can become a family child care provider you will need to meet the Colorado Family Child Care Regulations.  These regulations include having a safe home environment, purchasing certain toys and equipment, passing a background check and having annual home visits by a licensing specialist. 

There are many reasons why you should join the tens of thousands of other people who enjoy caring for children from other families in their own home. It’s rewarding to see children grow and learn. It’s a chance to stay home with your own children. And it’s an opportunity to make some money.  For more information about becoming a licensed family child care in Northeast Colorado, contact Sheila Anzlovar or Gail Pallesen at the Northeast Colorado Child Care Resource and Referral at 970-848-3867 or visit their website at www.ncccrr.org.  Grants are available to help people become licensed. 

The Northeast Colorado Child Care Resource and Referral has been providing services in Cheyenne, Kiowa, Kit Carson, Lincoln, Logan, Phillips, Sedgwick, Washington and Yuma Counties since 1993.  They are part of the non-profit organization, Rural Communities Resource Center and receive funding from Colorado Department of Human Services,  Lincoln County Department of Human Services and Yuma County Department of Human Services.