The Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico has suddenly informed families at the base that their children will be disenrolled from the day care at the end of the month, as part of widespread staffing issues hitting the military.

The memo from Holloman Air Force Base was sent out on May 9, which was Military Spouse Appreciation Day, and many families were shocked because of this news, as their children wouldn’t be able to go to the child care center.

What Is the Memo About?

The memo was brief and surprising to many families, as they were not expecting this announcement on Military Spouse Appreciation Day. The memo was sent out to 53 families just last week by the Holloman Air Force Base, letting them know that the child care center wouldn’t be able to care for the children of military families.

This is because of the staffing issues in the military, as we all know, are leading to employee and budget cuts.

"Child development centers traditionally face high turnover, and several recent departures due to [permanent change of station] season in conjunction with the hiring freeze and the post- hiring freeze exemption hiring process reduced the number of child care providers at Holloman AFB," Denise Ottaviano, a spokesperson for the base's 49th Wing said in an email statement.

The care will abruptly stop on May 23rd, which is only two weeks from the time it was announced.

It’s Also Happening on Other Bases

With this news, many cases have also been reported that this is also happening on other bases across the whole country, and not only the Air Force branch, but the Navy as well. Thus, not having enough staff for military child care isn’t only happening in one base.

The statement, provided by Destiny Sibert, a spokesperson for Navy Installations Command, said that, "while the Navy is in the process of filling vacant positions due to turnover or need for seasonal staff, military families may experience child care disruptions such as reduced capacity for summer camps, reduced operating hours for certain programs, canceled activities, disenrollment of lower prioritized families, suspension of before-school care, or a pause on new enrollments."

The bases in Utah, Colorado, and Florida have also been doing program cuts, closing classrooms, and sometimes even turning away from military families. Now, we can see that military child care is getting worse, after President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tried to cut down the number of federal workers; therefore, because of this, the bases are struggling and facing a challenge to provide the basic care that military families need.

How This Affects Military Families

This, for sure, is going to have a big impact on military families because now they have to figure it out childcare options for themselves.

Sure, other families already have a backup plan, but how about the families who are struggling? Most of them do not have a backup plan.

One military spouse said, "It was a shock. Two or three months give people kind of time to, you know, figure it out, and have a little bit of breathing room. They were just totally shocked and in panic."

Additionally, military members with a full-time working spouse are the ones who are going to be disenrolled.

Holloman Air Force Base did apologize for the sudden notice, saying, "The level of care we could provide changed quickly last week, which resulted in a lag of open communication with you all before receiving your notices -- we're sorry," the Monday message read.

One spouse said that more than six families she knows are now facing serious problems because of the loss of military child care.

How Can We Support the Families?

The Pentagon has made it clear that child care workers are fully exempt from the hiring freeze, but the resignations and the firings in the other parts of the military are making it harder to hire new workers, so it’s really a hit to the military child care.

The base is working hard to fix the issue, but the process is slow, even though they are offering the Family Child Care. The program will take months to set up because caregivers needs to go through background checks and such things to make sure they are qualified to take care of the children.

Now, the Holloman Air Force Base is prioritizing the families with the highest need, such as families that have both parents serving in the military. Regardless, many are calling for the base to speed up the process so that families can get the care that they need for their child.

Read next:

• Executive Order Expands School Choice Opportunities for Military Families
• 9 Military Influencers You Should Be Following Right Now
• 4 Simple Ways to Celebrate Military Spouse Appreciation Day

Sources:

• Dozens of Air Force Families Disenrolled from Day Care at New Mexico Base as Staffing Woes Grow