Hawaii Community Foundation

Children and a teacher play with colorful blocks at a classroom table, with one child excitedly raising her arms.

COVID-19 Impact

As of mid-April, over 21% of Hawaii’s labor force filed unemployment claims, putting Hawaii at one of the highest state-wide rates of unemployment due to the pandemic. Just 30% of childcare providers were open, but they are serving far fewer children than pre-pandemic. Of the remaining 70%, many are unsure if they will reopen or know how they will financially manage.

Emergency Fund

Hawaii Community Foundation has launched the Home-Based Child Care (HBCC) Emergency Fund, powered by the Hawaii Resilience Fund (HRF), to provide relief to licensed home-based child care providers across Hawaii. The Fund is intended to support child care providers currently serving health heroes and other essential workers. The Fund also seeks to lessen the potential for permanent closure of child care, especially in areas where home-based care is the primary option for families. The awards recognize the key role child care professionals play in helping our island communities weather the COVID-19 crisis and ease the burden on providers so that their focus can be on caring for children and families and themselves. In May, HCF awarded 125 grants to licensed family child care providers across every county in the state with an average of $2,000 per grant.

Home Grown is a national collaborative of funders committed to improving the quality of and access to home-based child care with a mission to increase access to and the quality of home-based child care. 

October 9, 2025
Families and child care providers are being squeezed as pandemic-era supports expire and federal funding stalls. Across the country, home-based providers are struggling to stay open amid lower reimbursements and rising costs. Without stronger federal investment in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), tens of thousands of children could lose access to care.
September 30, 2025
Carmela is a family, friend and neighbor caregiver who is proud of her Hispanic heritage. Learn more about how her Hispanic heritage shapes her work as a HBCC caregiver in this blog.
September 8, 2025
Grandparents are unsung heroes of home-based child care. Millions of grandparents are stepping up all across the U.S. to provide primary care for their grandchildren. Stories like Tracy Owen, Natalie Whitesides, and Maria Buehler show how grandparents balance work, retirement, or other responsibilities while providing loving care.