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‘Desperation’: Child care struggle worsens in rural U.S.

Karli Neilson plays legos with her sons Ezra, 5, left, and Axel, 2, in Gearhart, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. Neilson has alternated between having to take time off work and working part-time so as to watch her 2-year-old son. She hasn't been able to find formal care for him since he was born in August 2020. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Quinncey Hollowell, 3, paints at Bumble Art Studio day care center in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Kiera Holthusen reads a book at Bumble Art Studio day care center in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Elijah Rollings, 2, plays with a train set at Bumble Art Studio day care center in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Lova Robinson, 4, plays with bubbles at the Bumble Art Studio day care in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Amy Atkinson, owner of Bumble Art Studio paints with children at her day care center in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Karli Neilson plays with her son Axel, 2, in Gearhart, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. Neilson has alternated between having to take time off work and working part-time so as to watch her 2-year-old son. She hasn't been able to find formal care for him since he was born in August 2020. "It just got to be like a part-time job just doing the research and trying to find a place," Nielsen said. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Winnie VanDusen, 3, plays with blocks at Bumble Art Studio day care center in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Karli Neilson plays legos with her sons Ezra, 5, left, and Axel, 2, in Gearhart, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. Neilson has alternated between having to take time off work and working part-time so as to watch her 2-year-old son. She hasn't been able to find formal care for him since he was born in August 2020. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) Winnie VanDusen, 3, paints at the Bumble Art Studio day care center, while the center director Amy Atkinson helps another child in Astoria, Ore., Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. From Oregon to New York, demand for child care far exceeds supply. Families are growing increasingly desperate as providers deal with staffing shortages exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic as well as historically low pay worsened by inflation. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)