In 2024, Home Grown created the Home Grown Emergency Fund for Severe Weather and National Disasters to support home-based child care providers impacted by these events. This work provides an overview of the first emergency fund for severe weather and national disasters specific to HBCC programs in the United States, summarizing findings from a 2025 survey with 164 participants in North Carolina and Florida about their experiences of response and recovery following hurricanes Helene and/or Milton, as well as their experiences with the Home Grown Emergency Fund.
The Emergency Fund for Severe Weather and National Disasters – Learning from North Carolina and Florida
Women’s contributions and experiences are not well represented in the record books, but it is just as rich and worth celebrating. Ours is a tale of community, resilience, and connection to one another, and it is inextricably linked with care work.
During Women’s History Month, we celebrate the contributions that women have made to every corner of our society and honor their achievements. Among these leaders are the more than 5 million women who form the backbone of home-based child care (HBCC).
For generations, Black home-based child care providers have built systems of care rooted in community, trust, and resilience, often stepping in where formal systems fell short. Of the over 5 million home-based child care providers, including Family Child Care providers and paid and unpaid Family Friend and Neighbor caregivers, roughly a quarter in each subgroup identify as Black Non-Hispanic