OUTER BANKS, N.C. — Hatteras Island's only licensed childcare facility had to close its doors at the end of 2025, but moms on the island snapped into action. They've now successfully founded a nonprofit, secured $35,000 in startup money from Dare County and plan to bring childcare back to the same building, under a new name, by the beginning of 2027.
"Last time we talked, I was probably about in tears talking about it," said Erin Trant, who is on the founding advisory council of Coastal Family Collaborative.
News 3's Outer Banks reporter Will Thomas met Trant for the first time in January. That was a month after the only licensed childcare facility on Hatteras Island had to close its doors — and brought uncertainty about what the future of childcare looked like on the island.
For months before that, Trant alongside fellow mothers Whitney Dempsey and Kelly Aiken, were working to find a solution to the island's incoming childcare crisis. But it was a tough job facing three mothers who also worked full time.
"To be completely honest, myself and the other moms that were working on this project were just kind of at a standstill because we were working full-time jobs, had families," said Trant.
Now, less than eight months later, Hatteras Island has a new future for childcare through the nonprofit Coastal Family Collaborative. Trant says it all started when another Hatteras Island mother, the Rev. Amanda Hedden, found and secured a $50,000 grant from the North Carolina Rural Center.
"At that point it kind of just lit a fire under us. We got some other folks on board that have been in the nonprofit space before, and we had a local CPA willing to assist us with getting the federal nonprofit designation paperwork all submitted, a local attorney willing to assist us as well. So then myself, Amanda Hedden, and Heather Jennette kind of had a sit down and brought on board Whitney Dempsey," said Trant.
Now Trant says the hope is the nonprofit can reopen a licensed childcare facility by early 2027. Tidal Tots Childcare Center will be operating in the same building as the old daycare.
"This has been a huge blessing to our group to be able just really to open the doors, step in, and do a little bit of work. But the majority of it's already there and set up for us," said Trant.
The most recent step was going to Dare County commissioners to present their business model and to ask for $125,000 in startup funding for the building's rent for three years. Jennette shared the nonprofit's vision at the August 3 meeting. Commissioners made it clear they do feel this is a model that can work, but settled on $35,000 to help the group get started.
"We would have loved to have $125,000 but the $35,000 feels like a huge win for us because we do feel that they are taking childcare seriously and they understand the importance of it," said Trant.
The goal of the daycare will be care for up to 30 children from 6 weeks to 4 years old.
"It'll be six weeks until four. We'll have an infant classroom, toddler classroom, and then like a pre-K classroom, which is the same layout that Little Sprouts had as well. We're just continuing that same thing on, ratios for classrooms will be the same, and we'll follow the guidelines that we are required to. Obviously, if we could expand it, we would, but we just don't have the space to do that," said Trant.
Another focus for the facility will be the retention of teachers.
"Employee retention is is huge. We understand the burnout that goes along with working in a childcare facility. We're hopeful that we can work with a potential director to figure out those hurdles and how we might overcome them," said Trant.
At the end of the day, many hands have helped make this possible. This is a huge step in the right direction in making sure kids are cared for not just on Hatteras Island but the Outer Banks as a whole.
"Shouting it from the rooftops that we are moving forward and really conquering, I feel like, something that a lot of rural communities can't even wrap their heads around. We hope that we're able to be a beacon of hope that they can do it, and we're going to stand beside them and help get them moving forward as well," said Trant.
For more information on Tidal Tots Childcare Center and the services they offer, head to their Facebook page here.
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