Walnut families will soon have a local solution to the chronic shortage of childcare spots. Play Haven, a new daycare center, is set to open inside the Peace Haven senior living community early next year, providing a vital resource for parents and a source of joy for seniors.
Addressing a regional childcare crisis
Parents in Walnut often travel an hour or more to find available daycare, a symptom of Iowa’s broader shortage of early‑education facilities. A report from the Buffett Early Childhood Institute highlighted that just three counties—Mills, Pottawattamie, and Harrison—are missing more than 1,200 childcare spaces. Play Haven directly tackles that gap by repurposing existing senior‑living space, a move that saved roughly $500,000 in construction costs.
Funding and leadership
Haven Baker, the executive director of Play Haven, secured $1.2 million for the project with help from the Charles E. Lakin Foundation and other donors. “Before this was a job opportunity for me, I had been looking at going back to work, and it became really difficult because even just in‑homes around here have long wait lists or no availability,” Baker explained.
Benefits for families and seniors
Baker emphasized that reliable childcare is essential for keeping younger families in small towns. “If you can’t find childcare around here, it kind of forces them out of the smaller communities, which is hard because you obviously want to see your small community grow,” she said.
Residents of Peace Haven welcome the addition. Pearl Madson, a 99‑year‑old great‑grandmother who lives on the campus, expressed delight: “There’s nothing like little children.” She added that the intergenerational setting could help bridge the gap between grandparents and grandchildren, many of whom now live far apart.
“So many of the grandparents and the children are not in the same area, so maybe we can help with some of that,” Madson noted. Baker agreed, noting that the shared space would bring “a lot of older folks joy, especially if they haven’t done that in quite a while.”
Looking ahead
Play Haven’s opening is expected early next year, and community leaders are optimistic that the model could inspire similar projects across Iowa, where preserving small‑town vitality hinges on supporting families. By combining senior housing with early‑childhood education, Walnut is creating a practical, faith‑and‑family‑friendly solution that aligns with the values of traditional families and individual liberty.
Original reporting: KMTV 3 News Now (Scripps) – local — read the source article.
