Taniah Ingram is a doula who teaches prenatal classes and hosts a breastfeeding support group in Grand Rapids. She sees firsthand the challenges young families are facing. Parents rarely have paid family leave when a new baby comes along, finding quality child care is extremely difficult, and rushing through the workday routine leaves little room for quality family time.
“Finding someone who’s safe and reliable to leave your child with, especially here in Kent County, some families start planning as soon as they start trying to conceive,” Ingram says. “The job market’s really challenging, so is finding a job that is flexible enough — especially because most jobs are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and children get done with school around 3 p.m.”
Ingram also sees healthcare access becoming more difficult for her clients, especially those with Medicaid coverage…