Child Care Affordability Major Concern in County

New information from the Child Care Research Partnership (CCRP) shows that child care is difficult to afford for many Lincoln County residents, and that there is also a shortage of trained child care workers. The report shows the average annual cost of toddler care in Lincoln County is $6,471. That is almost as expensive as the average annual cost of college tuition in the state. The annual income of a minimum wage worker in the state is $17,472, meaning child care costs, on average, 37% of annual income. The report said, “Affordability emerges as the major issue. In most of the state, the price of child care exceeds public college tuition. This is especially an issue for families in the lowest income group who spend 29% of their family income on child care.” The CCRP also notes the availability of infant and toddler care, and care for children with special needs is an major issue. “Problems with availability of care are greatest in rural counties. Low wages and an absence of benefits result in a crisis-level shortage of persons willing to work in the child care industry. Low levels of training and high staff turnover threaten the quality of care available,” it said. Census figures show just almost half of children under age 13 need some form of non-parental care while parents work.

According to information from Oregon State University, the county did not have a licensed child care center that accepted infants and toddlers until a center was opened in Toledo in 2009. Infant and toddler care remains a critical need in the Newport area, as well as care during non-traditional hours, for parents working in tourism and service-related jobs or doing shift work. The CCRP releases a new report every two years. The current report shows 777 slots in child care and education centers, and 267 slots in family child care. Oregon’s goal is to have 25 slots for every 100 children. Lincoln County currently has only 19.

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Volunteers Needed For Holiday Giving Programs

A semi-truck of fruits and vegetables need unloading at Lincoln County Food Share Friday between 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. The produce will be distributed to three local holiday giving programs: Salvation Army, Toledo Elks and South Lincoln Resources. Volunteers are needed at Food Share’s warehouse (535 NE 1st St. Newport) to help unload and distribute specific amounts to the delivery vehicles for each agency.
 Toledo Elks will need help in Toledo unloading their delivery into the Elks basement for distribution into Christmas boxes.
South Lincoln Resources will need vehicles capable of carrying 1,300 lbs. to Waldport for distribution in the Christmas baskets. People wishing to volunteer their help should email organizers.

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Recorder Society Presents Food Share Benefit Concerts


The Oregon Coast Recorder Society (OCRS) performs two concerts benefiting Lincoln County Food Share. The first one is Friday, December 16 at 7:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Newport (227 NE 12th St.), and will perform the same program Friday, January 6 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Peter the Fisherman Lutheran Church in Lincoln City (1226 SW 13th St.). Both concerts will feature music for the holidays, including Renaissance and Baroque Christmas music by Johann Sebastian Bach, Michael Praetorius and others, as well as “Shir Hanukah” by Veitch, and two movements from a Christmas concerto by Archangelo Corelli. The group will also play two pieces for clocks by Benjamin Britten and Ludwig von Beethoven, and a piece by Frances Blaker, written especially for OCRS recorders and string bass player Corinne Newbegin. There will also be an audience Christmas Carol sing-along. OCRS musicians play several sizes of recorder, plus violas da gamba, gemshorns, string bass, violin, and guitar. Donations of nonperishable food items, checks, or cash are accepted as admission. All proceeds go to Food Share. For more information, call 541-961-1228 or visit their website.

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Federal Dollars Feed Majority of Lincoln County School Children

Federal free and reduced meal programs are feeding a majority of children in Lincoln County Schools. According to figures provided by the Lincoln County School District (LCSD), 64% of Lincoln County school children are signed up for the program, up from 62% last year. At Toledo Elementary, 72% of students take free or reduced cost meals, 54% at Toledo Jr./Sr. LCSD Support Services Director Rich Belloni said the number of students applying for assistance could be higher, but there is a certain stigma attached to taking assistance, especially in the high school grades. High schools’ use of free or reduced meals are lower than the rates for feeder schools with very few exceptions. At Toledo Elementary, 233 of the 352 students have applied for free meals and 19 more for reduced cost. 144 of the 307 Toledo Jr./Sr. Students receive free meals, and 21 have applied for reduced.

Full participation by eligible students also helps the district itself. “The Free/Reduced numbers are often used to support grant applications, so it potentially can be a drawback for the district if all eligible kids do not apply,” said LCSD Communications Coordinator Mary Jo Kerlin. A report in the New York Times November 29 based on USDA data showed 21 million students receiving free or reduced cost lunches in the 2010-2011 school year, a 17 percent increase from 2006-2007. Eleven states saw increases of 25 percent or more. Students in families with annual incomes at or below $29.055 are eligible for free meals. Children in four-member families with incomes at or below $41,348 qualify for subsidized meals.

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Local Donations Help Backpack Program

A $4 thousand grant from the Siletz Tribe Charitable Contribution Fund means a second consecutive year of operation for backpack programs in Toledo and Slietz Schools. Program organizers also issued public thanks to the Rebekah Lodge of Lincoln City for its donation of $1,500. The backpack program provides 65 students with weekend backpacks full of “kid friendly” foods, and when school meals are unavailable. Toledo and Siletz schools serve just over one thousand students, about 64% of whom rely on the USDA’s National School Lunch Program for their meals during the week. The program was created in 2010 in collaboration with the Lincoln Commission on Children and Families and the East County Homeless Education and Literacy Project (H.E.L.P.). It is run by community volunteers, Americorps VISTAs and school liaisons. Donations can be made at Toledo JC Market, Oregon Coast Bank, Bank of the West, Toledo Feed and Seed, Mike’s Mercantile, Pacific Spruce FCU, and the H.E.L.P. Center at the Arcadia Campus. To volunteer, donate or for more information call 541-265-9883.

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