Today’s post is written by freelancer Jocelyn Anne who met Rachael after reading Rachael’s G73 garage heater review, the heater Rachael installed in her garage-transformed-playroom.  Since then Jocelyn has had the honor of interviewing her and writing articles showcasing Rachael’s accomplishments.

I met Mrs. Rachael McCracken just a month ago when I was reading a product review she wrote for a heater produced by my company.  I was immediately captivated with her enthusiasm and with her story of transforming her own home garage into a daycare.  There was something about her that I couldn’t let go of, so I tracked her down via Google and sent her an e-mail to see if I could learn a little more about her and her story.

What I uncovered went far beyond a woman creating “just” a home daycare.  What I uncovered was a woman with drive, care, love, and passion to make a difference that I’ve rarely seen.  This woman gave up her standard 9-5 job with the birth of her first child when she realized that the thought of leaving him in anyone else’s care was simply too terrifying.  In order to compensate for the lost funds, she decided to “watch” a few more children in her home.  She did this for the next seven years.  She worked a lonely job in which her only adult interaction involved morning and evening pick-ups and her work “bragging rights” consisted of things like how many diapers she’d changed in a day.

But, none of that mattered.  Inspired by her desire to help other mothers in a similar situation as she once was – unwilling to leave their babies with relative strangers in an institutionalized setting – she knew that she loved her day “job” enough to turn it into a full blown career.  Their family moved into a larger house.  She spent her spare time taking classes to become state certified.  They rented a second home and with a mere $1,000 budget, she managed to transform the house’s garage into a beautiful, comforting year-round play room.  And now, just nine years later, she’s not only the proud mom to three children, she is also the proud owner of not one, but two state licensed daycares, with a third in the works, all under the banner name Rachael’s Daycare.  And even more than that, she employs 8 full time employees in her small hometown in Indiana, a huge blessing to those families.

But, beyond creating a career for herself from nothing, beyond helping countless families and countless children, Rachael strives on a daily basis to make a difference in how home daycares are seen.  As Rachael says in her own words:

…Sometimes communities and neighborhoods can make home daycares feel unwelcome.  Home daycare providers are a vital part of every community…We provide a less-expensive option for childcare than most centers so we help give parents the extra income needed to maintain their homes, live their lives, and support their families.  I look forward to the day that home daycare providers no longer feel like they have to hide who they are from their neighbors, but instead they are embraced, loved, and appreciated for their part in supporting the families in our community!

And, in addition to living her life and running her businesses in such a way as to change the way home daycares are seen, she’s doing everything she can to help local women.  Two years ago she took over leadership of a local daycare group.  Since then, she has helped the group establish a name: TheChildcare4U Association, as well as a website: www.Childcare4u.org in order to help their local families find them.  These women and daycares help each other, support each other, and ensure that each of them maintains the high-quality standards they want home daycares across the nation to stand for.  Monthly meetings offer ideas for quality improvement and a place to share and support others in the same profession.

In my mind, Rachael is truly a local hero.  While she may not be climbing the so-called “ladders” in the corporate world with shiny nameplates on her desk and door to show for it, she’s changing the lives of children every single day.  She’s easing the minds of 22 sets of parents at this very moment by knowing that their children are spending the day in a loving, home-like environment.  She might biologically be mom to three, but she’s mom to so many more.  And, as she does her part, every single day in a small town in Indiana to change the notion of home-day care, I think she’s doing her part across the nation.  It only takes one to spread the word.