"No one would have given me a loan for $25,000, so I am very grateful to the WBDC for their help."

Parents who work non-traditional hours, often have difficulty finding quality child care for their children, as many established child care centers only provide services from 6:30AM to 6:00PM. Carol Aka, who started Mother Plumtree’s Playhouse in May 2000, knew that offering “off hour” child-care would give her business a competitive advantage.

As with most home based child care businesses, the physical structure of the home adds unique challenges for running a business with infants, toddlers and preschoolers. Ms. Aka’s home, a typical Chicago cottage, had the kitchen, living and dining rooms on the first floor where the children played. The bathroom and bedrooms were upstairs. Changing diapers and toilet training children who needed to be supervised in an upstairs bathroom was inconvenient at best, so a downstairs bathroom was a necessity. At this point, Ms.Aka had a waiting list of children who wanted to enroll in her home day care center, so she felt that expansion of her business was a great opportunity. However, getting a loan to make the needed improvements to her home was a hurdle.

To prepare for the loan, Ms. Aka’s business plan was updated and she met with Teresa Prim, another counselor at the WBDC, who helped package her financial materials for the WBDC loan committee. A loan was awarded for $25,000 to pay for construction and architectural fees to complete the 285 square foot addition, which included a new bathroom, playroom and porch. “The WBDC has a wonderful program, and Liz Gardner was a real help” said Ms. Aka. “No one would have given me a loan for $25,000, so I am very grateful to the WBDC for their help.” Ms. Aka noted that she has since repaid the loan in full.

Now in its fourth year, Mother Plumtree’s Playhouse is a happy and exciting place for children. Ms. Aka enjoys being her own boss and seeing how her business has expanded. “Being a day care provider is not an easy job, as you work hard all day with the children. But I love it” says Ms. Aka.