One Major Step towards addressing the Childcare Shortages in Mitchell County…and why everyone should care about childcare!

February 2, 2026

Many times, when talking to the public about childcare shortages over the past four years, I have been met with comments like, “I’m so glad I don’t have to worry about childcare anymore,” or even, “Why would I care about daycare? My kids are grown/I don’t have kids.” However, if you live in a community and utilize the hospital, grocery store, schools, pharmacy, hair salons – you do rely on childcare, regardless of your martial status, family size or age. If you utilize city streets, visit the parks or trails, or appreciate law enforcement, you should be concerned about childcare shortage.

When existing, new or future residents in our community are unable to find quality childcare, the trickle effect impacts everyone. People may choose to move out of our community or choose a different community when looking to relocate. The loss of one, two, a dozen families due to childcare shortages impacts sales tax revenue, property tax revenue, unemployment, school enrollment, the list goes on and on. When our nurses, teachers, welders, customer service reps, and others must leave their jobs because they lose childcare or cannot find childcare, it leaves critical gaps in our workforce. Childcare is truly a community-wide issue that everyone should want to see improved. This is also why it is an important piece of overall economic development in our rural communities.

There is not one single solution to solve the childcare crisis; however, one local organization is stepping up in a BIG way to bridge a huge gap in childcare in Mitchell County. The Beloit First Christian church launched their Kingdom Kids Childcare Center capital campaign on January 11, 2026.

To help spread the word, we reached out to the Kingdom Kids Childcare Center committee for answers to several big questions:

1. When did the conversation around a faith-based childcare center first begin?
   • This is the culmination of a 3 year process of meeting, praying, and planning. The idea first came up in October of 2022, and an exploratory team was created in December of 2022. That team gathered data, took field trips to other childcare centers, weighed a variety of options, and developed the plan that we are now proposing.
2. Why did the Beloit First Christian Church ultimately decide to take on this large project?
   • The process began as we became aware of the pressing need for additional childcare in our community. At the same time, the Lord has been blessing our children and youth ministries with strong growth and excitement. We felt the Lord was revealing the intersection of our mission (to make and grow disciples for Jesus Christ) with the need that has now been well documented. Along the way there were times when it felt like God closed the door but always followed with an additional open door with new possibilities. The decision to move forward wasn’t simple, but in the past few months, it became clear.
3. Where will the childcare center be located?
   • Kingdom Kids Childcare Center will be built on the two lots just west of the church building, on the corner of 4^th and Bell Street. One lot has already been cleared, and the other will be as we get further into the capital campaign.
4. How many children could the center accommodate when fully staffed?
   • Our architectural plans are approved by KDHE to be a licensed facility for up to 71 children.
5. How many people will you be hiring to work at Kingdom Kids?
   • Our initial plans are to have a staff of 15 people. KDHE has staff/child ratios that we will be required to follow; so the number of staff will be dependent on the numbers and ages of the children in attendance each day.  Fifteen is our goal to start, but that number may need to be increased when we reach full capacity. 
6. What is your capital campaign goal? Has any funding already been committed?
   • The capital campaign goal is $2.7 million dollars, based on the architectural construction estimate, and an initial 6 months operating funds in hand. We have been absolutely blown away by the support we have received since launching our campaign on January 11, 2026. As of January 30^th, we have received nearly $810,000 in pledges and donations towards the project!
7. Best case scenario, when do you hope to break ground?
   • Best case would be to have the needed funds raised and ground-breaking at the end of this year, or beginning of 2027. Our desire is to see Kingdom Kids up and running in the fall of 2027.
8. Who can we contact to learn more? Who has served on your committee?
   • The Kingdom Kids Team includes: Sherry Angell (785-738-7182), Jim Gates (785-569-1213), Laura Heagy (785-534-0771), Cliff Heagy (785-534-0770), Julia Rabe (785-534-3884), Lana Ratliff (785-282-5377), Kelly Reling (785-534-0755), Staci Stallings (719-440-2668), and Leann Wehrman (785-531-1363).
9. What excites you most about this project?
   • We are excited to help meet a community need by providing a safe, compliant and self-sustaining Christian Childcare Center which will offer excellent and loving care to children ages 2 weeks – 10 years old. Also, being a part of something that God is doing is amazing. The fact that the Lord would choose to use weak, imperfect people to accomplish His good plans is an incredible privilege, and really exciting.
10. Is there any other information you would like to share?
    • We will be hosting a community meeting for another to attend on Thursday, February 5^th at 6:30pm at the Solomon Valley Office Suites (102 S Mill St, Beloit). Dana Stanton will be available to talk about the recent childcare survey that was completed in Mitchell County. The Kingdom Kids Childcare Center leadership team will also be there to answer questions and give a short presentation about the project. Learn more about the event here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1DeAupwcZp/

You can also visit beloitfcc.org/kingdomkids for more information, and to sign-up on the Kingdom Kids email list to receive updates.

Childcare is a constantly changing and complex problem requiring adaptive thinking and solutions. It takes great leadership, courage and heart to find sustainable solutions. We are so thankful the Beloit First Christian Church has taken this leap of faith to bring a childcare center to Mitchell County.

Discover Mitchell County is also working alongside local childcare supporters to develop the Mitchell County Childcare Coalition. Thanks to a grant from the Solomon Valley Community Foundation in 2025, we hope to be active and available to start applying for grants to support new and existing childcare providers across Mitchell County. Want to get involved? Reach out to me at emily@discovermitchellcounty.com.

Happy February!

Emily Benedick, Economic Development

emily@discovermitchellcounty.com

785.738.3000

---