KarunaNews Story

Nonprofit Toby’s House Crisis Nursery is a no-cost child care service in Great Falls, Montana, that specializes in emergency care. Toby’s House fills a specific need in that landscape; most of the parents served by the center are working people who lack a support system, such as family members or trusted friends. Without a safety net, they face a choice between parenting a child and meeting obligations for work, school or their own health. “One of the biggest needs was helping families care for their children so that the parents could attend a mental health appointment, like a counseling appointment,” said Susie Zeak, who was executive director of Toby’s House from 2020 to 2024. Toby’s House opened in Great Falls in 2020 with the goal of diverting parents and their children from those destabilizing and potentially violent situations. Although relatively small, the center has steadily expanded over the last five years and has outgrown its current location. The state of Montana has significant deficits in the availability of child care, with an estimated 63,000 parents who are unable to hold a job because they can’t secure affordable child care.