Young Families Need More Support

Kaitlyn Wight's first daughter Arya was just four days old when the family moved to Minden. Alone in a new community, Wight struggled to find programs for her baby but eventually discovered the Early ON program at Archie Stouffer Public School and some others offered at the Haliburton County Public Library.Now Arya is 2 and a half and has a 10-month-old sister Amelia to keep her company. But for Wight, the lack of childcare here has caused her to choose to remain a stay-at-home parent until both her daughters are in school. She says it's just something the family has decided because waitlists for childcare in Haliburton County remain long with little hope for change anytime soon.This is Part Three of the multi-episode series on the voices of Haliburton County as we inch ever closer to the upcoming municipal election. The series, entitled,WHAT MATTERS HERE: Listening to the voices of Haliburton County,will cover the issues that matter to various demographic groups in our region.In this, Part Three, we'll hear from a number of young mothers to find out what they'd like their elected representatives to do to support young families here.