History

PATCH was born in Honolulu during the early and mid-70’s, a time when Hawaii, as a state, was preceding the nation in its acute need for child care. This phenomenon was due largely because of a very high cost of living coupled with a dependency on a generally low-paid, primarily service, workforce (tourism). The scene was characterized by non-profit preschools for 3 to 5 year olds and a primarily “underground” system of family child care providers for infants and toddlers.

It began with a core group made up of home-based providers and early childhood educators who came together at the Honolulu Community College (HCC) while participating in a new early childhood education program. Public awareness about this new program grew through newspaper articles and soon the HCC offices were being inundated by calls from parents looking for quality caregivers for their children.

In 1976, in response to the great demand, the group decided to form a private non-profit organization – PATCH - to act as an advocacy agency to improve the availability and accessibility of quality child care programs in Hawaii.

PATCH was incorporated as a private non-profit 501(c)3 organization in 1976.

To see the 2006 PATCH Annual Report click here