New Nonprofit Secures $500,000 Federal Grant to Strengthen Rural Child Care Across Northern New Hampshire

COÖS COUNTY, N.H. — Evergreen Start, a new nonprofit organization created to strengthen and expand rural child care in Northern New Hampshire, has received federal 501(c)(3) status, established its inaugural Board of Directors, and secured a $500,000 grant from the Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) to support its launch and growth.

The award was one of 16 projects funded across rural New Hampshire through the NBRC's Economic & Infrastructure Development Investment Program and will support the creation of regional child care infrastructure designed to strengthen providers, support working families, and improve workforce participation throughout the North Country.

The announcements mark a significant milestone for an organization focused on one of the most pressing workforce and economic development challenges facing northern New Hampshire: access to affordable, sustainable child care.

"Across northern New Hampshire, communities, employers, and families all recognize that child care has become a critical workforce issue," said Amy Graham, Chair of the Evergreen Start Board of Directors. "When child care programs struggle, the effects ripple throughout the local economy. Evergreen Start was created to provide the support systems that allow providers to remain strong, sustainable, and focused on the children and families they serve."

Founded in 2025, Evergreen Start was created to help rural communities stabilize and expand child care by providing the operational infrastructure many small programs struggle to maintain on their own. The organization offers shared fiscal management, human resources support, compliance assistance, administrative services, and strategic planning designed to help child care providers focus on serving children and families.

According to the Northern Border Regional Commission, the Evergreen Start investment will support a regional child care back-office infrastructure model providing centralized fiscal and operational management designed to support workforce participation and employee retention throughout rural communities.

"Child care is no longer simply a family issue; it is an economic development issue," said Airole Warden, Executive Lead Consultant. "When parents cannot find reliable child care, employers struggle to fill positions, businesses lose productivity, and communities lose opportunities for growth. This investment recognizes that strong child care systems are essential infrastructure for rural economies."

Evergreen Start's inaugural Board of Directors brings together leaders from early childhood education, business, advocacy, community development, and the nonprofit sector. The board will guide the organization as it develops a regional shared-services model designed specifically for the realities of rural communities.

Across the North Country, employers, community leaders, and economic development organizations have identified child care shortages as a major barrier to workforce recruitment and retention. Rural providers often face additional challenges related to staffing, administration, regulatory compliance, and financial sustainability.

Evergreen Start was designed to address those challenges through a collaborative approach that strengthens individual providers while helping communities identify opportunities for stabilization, expansion, and long-term growth.

During its first year, Evergreen Start will focus on developing shared-service infrastructure, supporting participating child care programs, strengthening administrative and financial systems, and building partnerships with communities, employers, funders, and public-sector organizations.

"Rural child care solutions require more than one-time funding or short-term fixes," said Warden. "They require durable infrastructure, trusted relationships, and a model that understands the realities of small programs and rural communities. Evergreen Start is designed to meet that need."

For more information about Evergreen Start or partnership opportunities, visit https://www.evergreenstart.org/

ABOUT EVERGREEN START

Evergreen Start is a New Hampshire nonprofit founded in 2025 to strengthen the long-term stability of rural child care. Through shared fiscal, administrative, human resources, compliance, and operational infrastructure, Evergreen Start supports child care centers and child care-supportive organizations so they can remain focused on children, families, staff, and their local communities.

ABOUT THE NORTHERN BORDER REGIONAL COMMISSION

The Northern Border Regional Commission is a federal-state partnership for economic and community development in northern Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. The Commission invests in projects that strengthen rural economies, expand opportunity, support workforce development, and improve community infrastructure.