At Maitas Child Care in Pasco, Maria Muñoz del Carmen’s work reaches beyond the children in her care. Since opening her home-based business during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, she also has helped aspiring childcare providers build businesses of their own.

“Everyone told me it was a risk to start a business at that time,” she said.

However, she was undeterred, knowing that essential workers urgently needed daycare services.

“I opened with six spots and filled up quickly because the community needed help,” she said.

Since then she’s expanded her facility and mentored other childcare providers, locally as well as across the state.

Her efforts have paid off as her facility earned the state’s highest quality rating and recently was named Business of the Year by the Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

At-home daycare

Muñoz started her childcare facility by converting the ground floor space of her home into an early learning childcare environment.

She gained experience in early learning education and childcare in 2010 when she worked in after-school and summer programs for children. She also has an associate degree in early childhood education.

She discovered the pathway to open a daycare through The Imagine Institute, a Tukwila-based nonprofit which helps people start their own family home childcare businesses by providing training, mentorship opportunities, support, technical assistance and guidance for navigating Washington state childcare business requirements.

“They gave me the base,” she said, adding, “I started with the bare minimum – a folding table and chairs, some toys and those kinds of things to fulfill the state requirements. I expanded over time to include more activities and furniture.”

Her daughter, Juliane Alfaro Muñoz, now works with her at Maitas. The business can care for 12 children at a time, ages 2 months and older, including children with special needs.

Maria Muñoz also oversees a rotating cast of local interns working with The Imagine Institute to start their own childcare practices in an increasingly strict regulatory environment.

So far, she has mentored 15 people locally. Her mentoring work has reached more than 50 people through Maitas, Columbia Basin College and classes held over Zoom through The Imagine Institute.

She keeps in touch with her former interns to help people find childcare if Maitas is at capacity.

A bright early learning classroom at the home-based Maitas Child Care. 

| Photo by Laura Kostad

Importance of education

Even as she helps others become childcare providers, Maria Muñoz is continuing her own education.

This past year Maria Muñoz began work on her bachelor’s degree while both of her daughters are also taking college courses.

She uses curriculum in line with what Pasco School District’s Early Learning Center uses. “Now daycare is leaning more toward education,” Maria Muñoz said.

Maitas provides organic meals and works to create community among the children in her care and their families.

They go on park outings, swim at The Wellness Clinic at LifeQuest’s pool and attend special activities, like the water lantern festival at Columbia Park.

“One of the parents – her baby doesn’t have siblings – and she says the kids in daycare are like siblings to her baby,” Maria Muñoz said.

“I feel the responsibility to do the best I can for the kids by giving them a home away from home.”

Honors

Maitas Child Care recently earned the Level 5 Early Achievers distinction from the Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families, the state’s highest designation quality rating and improvement system for early learning programs.

Maria Muñoz’s work in the childcare industry was recognized by the Hispanic chamber Oct. 16 at its annual Floreciendo Juntos Gala & Awards, which recognizes those making a meaningful impact throughout the Tri-Cities community. Winners were selected by chamber members.

“Maitas Child Care … provides children and families with a safe, nurturing and bilingual environment where children can learn and grow.
 “Beyond her own business, Maria’s nominators recognized her for generously mentoring aspiring childcare providers, sharing her knowledge and helping others build businesses that can serve local families,” chamber officials said during the gala.

Childcare shortage

The need Maria Muñoz encountered when she opened Maitas extends beyond the families she serves.

According to The Imagine Institute, which works to introduce 150 new childcare providers to Washington communities annually, more than half of Washington residents live in childcare deserts. This means that most working families find it difficult or impossible to find childcare.

While childcare is a multibillion dollar sector of Washington’s economy, its high cost makes it the single largest monthly expense for many working families, according to The Imagine Institute.

The Imagine Institute believes that children from low-income families “who have access to high quality childcare are less likely to be held back, referred to special education, incarcerated and more likely to graduate high school, and attend college.”

“Kids from an early age have the important need to learn and absorb everything. We can provide a solid base so that when they grow up, they have integrity,” Maria Muñoz said.

“We provide support, especially emotional support, because sometimes kids live with families that struggle with bills, payments, stress and Mom and Dad have so little time to share with them.”

She said a lot of her clients are single parents or separated.

“We try to cover that time to make sure they are safe and loved because that time that kids share with parents is only two hours a day sometimes, especially school age kids,” Maria Muñoz said.

Future plans

Before helping other families build a foundation for their children, Maria Muñoz was building a new life of her own. She immigrated to the United States from Guatemala 20 years ago and knew little English.

She had previously worked in accounting and business administration, but when she went to CBC in 2018 to begin her associate degree, found out that she would have to get a GED diploma first.

By day, she worked in the fields cutting apples and later in dry cleaning and at night she pursued her coursework and English classes while also raising her two girls.

This past year, Maria Muñoz suffered a stroke, but that isn’t holding her back from her goals.

“My plan for the future is to have a childcare center. Now that I have more knowledge I can do more to help the community,” she said. “I feel like a support for the community because the families come from my community and they can help me to grow too. I am grateful to my community.”

Her daughter appears to be following in her footsteps, too. She plans to eventually open her own daycare as well.

Maitas Child Care: 509-947-4826, [email protected], 3206 Paz Court, Pasco.