Grace Lutheran Childcare (a ministry of Grace Lutheran Church in Vancouver, Washington), recently celebrated the dedication of a new toddler restroom and classroom, complete with a ribbon cutting (ribbon made of braided toilet paper, appropriately). The event celebrates the expansion from three to five early learning classrooms – a project supported by a 2025 Northwest District Catalyst Grant.
When the current director arrived in 2017, Grace Lutheran Childcare was licensed to serve 28 children between the ages of 12 months and 5 years, with only 6 of those slots serving toddler-aged children. Reports on childcare in Vancouver, and Clark County as a whole, showed the area was classified as a “childcare desert.” Supported by the numerous calls requesting toddler care that the center couldn’t meet, Grace recognized the community need for increased toddler spaces.
In assessing the possibilities, Grace understood they had the classroom size and square footage to allow for more children, but an additional restroom would be needed to meet licensing requirements if an additional toddler classroom were to be added. Grace started to explore the possibility of converting a storage space into an additional restroom. Construction began in the summer of 2025 and continued into the fall. Catalyst Grant funds supported the purchase of an older toddler changing table for the new restroom, along with additional toddler furnishings for the new classroom. Finally, in mid-May, Grace received the new license that increased the center’s capacity to 64 children, with 20 of those little ones designated as toddler-age children.
Grace’s mission is to connect children and families with Christ, and this new classroom, restroom, and expanded capacity allows us to connect with the lives of even more people in our community, sharing the love of Jesus each and every day with the children in our care. An evangelism challenge for congregations these days are the many in our communities who don’t feel a need for the Lord, for a church home, for anything spiritual; even further, some have left the church due to negative experiences in their past. Through our childcare ministry, we are able to bypass such barriers, connect with these families, and relationally demonstrate that we are, through Christ, a caring, loving community.
As we rejoice in sharing this positive update, we also give thanks for the support of our Northwest District through the Catalyst Grant program. We deeply value knowing that as we stepped out in faith to more significantly impact our community, the District came alongside to help!