Who you are :
I’m Kristina Foth, a farmer’s wife, mother of two (ages 4 and 7 months) and I have the honor of serving the Valley County community through my work with Valley County Economic Development and the Ord Area Chamber of Commerce. You could say I’m in the business of promoting and growing our community.
Community you call home:
I was born and raised in Valley County, graduated from Ord High School and after college by husband and I both returned to the area. The Valley County community has always been home for both of us and I’m thrilled about the opportunity to raise our children in this thriving and progressive community.
How you became involved with LVCI:
Childcare is an economic development issue. Local businesses have expressed difficultly in hiring and retaining employees due to the lack of childcare availability. Childcare is also a recruitment issue. I often interact with prospective and new residents and one of the first questions they ask, if they have or plan to have children, is about childcare availability. If our community doesn’t have the capacity to fill this vital need for families that want to move to Valley County, they will choose to build there life elsewhere. I also love connecting people to resources and opportunities and while our community has incredible providers and programs, there are so many more opportunities to capitalize on that would further enrich the lives of local children and meet the needs of our community.
Why is it important to you:
This initiative is important to me on a personal and professional level. My family has experienced challenges due to the lack of infant care. Thankfully we have family members to help fulfill our immediate needs but I know not all parents in our community have a local family or support system to help care for their children. Our community has wonderful early childhood development offerings and we also have incredible childcare providers but we need more capacity to serve our current population and future newcomers.
Your hope for this initiative:
LVCI will work to provide impactful resources and offerings for childcare providers, parents and caregivers, business owners and employers, and of course, the children in the Valley County area. I see LVCI as an opportunity to invest in our community’s greatest asset…our people.
Anything you would like the community to know about this initiative/early childcare:
I love and appreciate the work that LVCI has initiated so far. The synergy and collaboration has been incredible and I know this childhood initiative will continue to grow and evolve as our community needs change over time. The door is always open for providers, parents, stakeholders and community members to express those needs and to share their ideas for growth.