Day Care Expansion Gets Boost
With a growing waitlist of parents needing childcare, the Lanigan Cooperative Day Care has launched an ambitious expansion project that will see the day care more than double in size from 42 to 90 spots.
“Lots of people are moving into Lanigan for career opportunities and there’s just no day care spots available,” says Katelynn Psovsky, a member of the day care’s board and expansion committee. “I know one family that moved here and both parents wanted to work at the mine, but there were no daycare spots and so now they have to juggle work, commuting and childcare.”
The expansion of potash mining projects in the area are having a significant impact on the local economy and population growth, and in the fall of 2023 the day care board decided to strike a committee to get things started, with raising funds to support the project being at the top of the to do list.
“We are just in the early stages of planning our expansion, but we are thinking we will need about $2.5 million to complete the project,” says Psovsky. “We are a non-profit organization, so we know we are going to rely a lot on grants and support from businesses in the area.”
The project received an early boost in fundraising when Megan Daelick, an ag business specialist at the Blair’s ag retail location in Lanigan, suggested Psovsky apply for funding from ADAMA Canada's Stomping Grounds program. The committee was very grateful when they received word in April that their application was selected for a $10,000 investment.
“This area is really taking off, and I’ve seen how it can be a bit of a balancing act for the town to accommodate that growth while providing the essential services, like childcare, that are needed to support that growth,” says Shantelle Cave, Area Business Manager for ADAMA Canada.
Now in its second year, Stomping Grounds was created by ADAMA Canada with the mandate to invest in local initiatives that support youth, health and connection. The day care expansion is one of 22 community-nominated projects the company will be investing in across Canada this year.
“I know it can be tough to attract families to move to rural areas for work, and I can imagine the stress of finding day care would make that decision even harder on families,” says Cave. “This project is really going to make a difference, not just for the mines in the area, but for businesses like Blair’s and everyone involved in agriculture.”
“We’re very excited. With a big expansion like this sometimes just the thought of where to start can be a bit daunting,” says Psovsky. “But then you get something like this investment from Stomping Grounds and you think, this is really happening, and we can do this.”
About ADAMA
ADAMA Canada has been supplying the Canadian agricultural community with crop protection products for more than a decade. We offer an innovative approach to ag and proactively seek opportunities to listen to what our customers, experts and colleagues have to say, taking their inputs and learning from their experience. We combine these insights with our expertise and respond with new products, solutions, services, tailored commercial policies, or information that is relevant to them. We are passionate about agriculture and approach what we do as much more than just a job. Our straightforward, get-it-done attitude helps us stay focused on what we care about most: helping our customers create more sustainable, profitable businesses. ADAMA is the seventh largest crop protection company globally with sales in 100 countries and has the largest portfolio of any company with over 270 active ingredients.