Invest in child care

To the Editor;

The need for increased availability of quality child care and early childhood education has been recently highlighted in the Bangor Daily News by Thomas College President Laurie Lachance and retired Brig. Gen. Rob Carmichael. Their perspectives are valuable to all of us, not only here in Maine, but as a nationwide mandate for building stronger communities throughout our country. 

Countless families of all socioeconomic levels must contend with the challenge of finding quality daycare placement for their children, in order to allow them to work knowing their kids are being nurtured and well-cared for. Early education helps to instill both the soft and hard skills that lay a foundation for developing individuals who are inquisitive, productive and self-assured. Our present workplace environments generally require both the hard skills of competency in literacy and numerical reasoning, as well as the soft skills of developing empathy, generosity and responsibility. 

Investing as a society in quality child care education for those families who must, or choose to, have it available as an option contributes to stronger communities as well as a vibrant economy.    

Jamie Gaudion 

Dover-Foxcroft