For families lucky enough to be on her roster, Rhonda Mack’s home near Lake Leelanau is an ideal safe and nurturing place to leave their young children during the workday. Many more families are stuck in limbo, unable to find affordable childcare for infants and toddlers. The crisis is particularly acute in rural areas. Mack’s business is a model that the Leelanau County Early Childhood Development Commission (LECDC) hopes will inspire at least four or five more home-based childcare businesses to launch during 2022. This month LECDC kicks off a multipronged campaign to recruit others to set up their own home-based child care facilities.

