Following the Vietnam conflict, the all-volunteer force brought new challenges for military support organizations. A good example of what we offer military families is drop-in child care. Access to high quality, affordable child care is a problem for military families because of a military parent's work and deployment schedule, an increase in the number of single parents, and spouses who have to work to make ends meet. The YMCA's standards are high, and the child care centers are inspected regularly to ensure that they meet safety standards.
Some centers run drop-in child care in military health clinics.
It is an enormous help to a mother who has a doctor's appointment when she can leave the well-child at the child care center. Now the wait has been reduced by a third. Another innovative program is the Y on Wheels, a mobile van that brings games, toys, and educational activities to military children living in remote or low-cost housing, apartments, and trailer parks. Y on Wheels is in touch with military families who may also need other military sponsored assistance. The Y on Wheels in Missouri reaches children of service members who are housed in trailer parks around the military base.