Today we’d like to introduce you to Stacie Steelman.
Hi Stacie, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I didn’t start Crunch Care as a business plan.
I started it as a solution.
As a young mom, I struggled to find childcare I could truly trust. Not just someone safe, but someone capable, dependable, and aligned with how I wanted my home to feel. Every option felt uncertain, inconsistent, or transactional. I realized families were not just looking for babysitters. They were looking for stability and peace of mind.
So I began personally recruiting caregivers. Carefully. Intentionally. One by one.
What started as helping a few local families quickly grew through word of mouth. Parents needed reliability. Caregivers needed respect and professional opportunities. I built the company around both, high standards for families and real careers for caregivers.
Nearly two decades later, Crunch Care has become a nationwide childcare staffing and placement firm serving major metropolitan markets across the U.S., partnering with corporations, hospitals, and private families. We now support thousands of households and employ hundreds of caregivers, but the mission has never changed.
We do not provide childcare.
We provide stability for families during the moments that matter most.
Today, after building the company while raising three boys and navigating my own health journey, I understand even more deeply what families need, support that allows them to keep showing up in their lives.
Crunch Care was built from real life, and that is still what drives it.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The pandemic was one of the hardest periods our business has ever faced. Childcare stopped overnight, families were uncertain, and our caregivers lost work. We relied on government programs and additional support just to protect the people who depended on us and keep the company alive.
At the same time my personal life was changing. I went through a divorce while raising three children under the age of ten and had to rediscover who I was both as a woman and as a professional. That period pushed me to re-engage the industry at a higher level. I became active in professional associations including the Association of Premier Nanny Agencies and later served on the Board of Directors for the International Nanny Association.
Then came another unexpected chapter, a colon cancer diagnosis.
Strangely, that season did not slow the vision down. It sharpened it. I became more driven and more intentional about what I wanted the company to become. During that time Crunch Care evolved from a strong local business into a much larger organization, expanding across major western metropolitan markets as well as New York and Denver.
The experience pushed me to build something bigger than a service.
It pushed me to build a legacy.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Crunch Care is a nationwide childcare staffing and placement firm built on the belief that reliable care is not a convenience, it is infrastructure for modern families.
We provide highly vetted caregivers for corporate backup care, long term placements, and specialized family support. Our backup care services operate across major metropolitan markets including San Diego, Orange County, Los Angeles, Palm Springs, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Portland, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Denver, and New York City, while our placement services are available to families nationwide.
Our work supports parents during the moments that matter most, early mornings before work, last minute schedule changes, travel, illness, and the everyday demands of raising children while maintaining careers.
What sets Crunch Care apart is that we are not a marketplace and not an app. We are a hands on staffing organization. Every caregiver is recruited, interviewed, and supported by our internal team. We build relationships on both sides, families trust us and caregivers build real careers through us. Our standards are intentionally high because families are trusting us inside their homes and caregivers are trusting us with their livelihood.
We are proud that many of our caregivers and families stay with us for years. We are proud of the professional community we have built and the stability we bring into homes during stressful or transitional times. The goal has always been calm, not just coverage.
Our company is also shaped by lived experience. After our founder’s cancer diagnosis, we committed to using the business as a vehicle for impact. Through our cancer initiative and fundraising efforts, Crunch Care supports patients and families facing treatment by providing resources, care assistance, and community support.
A major part of our mission is the intention to align with and support organizations dedicated to children and families facing hardship, including causes similar to Baby2Baby and Do Cancer. These efforts represent where the company is headed, integrating service, community support, and real world impact into the business itself. Giving back is not separate from the business, it is part of why the business exists.
What we want people to know is simple.
We are not just arranging childcare.
We are protecting the ability for families to keep living their lives when life becomes complicated.
Crunch Care exists so parents do not have to choose between being present at home and present in their responsibilities.
What matters most to you? Why?
What matters most to me is that the company actually improves people’s lives, not just fills shifts.
Crunch Care was never meant to be a transaction. It exists so parents can keep commitments, go to work without panic, care for a sick child without risking their job, and still feel present in their families. Stability inside a home changes everything, and I take seriously that we are trusted in someone’s most private space.
It also matters to me that caregivers are treated like professionals. This industry has historically undervalued the people doing some of the most important work in society. I want them to have consistency, respect, and real career opportunities, not just temporary gigs.
My own experiences shaped this deeply. Raising three children while building the company, going through personal challenges, and facing cancer clarified what support really means. When life becomes uncertain, the smallest forms of reliable help become the biggest forms of relief. That perspective drives how we operate every day.
I also care about using the company for impact beyond business. Supporting families facing hardship, especially those dealing with illness, and aligning with organizations that serve children is not a marketing effort to me. It is the responsibility that comes with building something meaningful.
At its core, what matters most is that Crunch Care makes people feel held up, not just helped. If families feel calmer and caregivers feel respected, then we are doing the work correctly.
Pricing:
- Temporary services begin at $45 an hour
- Hotel services at $55 an hour
- Placement services 15-20% of annual compensation
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.crunchcare.com
- Instagram: @crunchcareinc
- Facebook: @crunchcareinc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stacie-steelman-b16a2b2?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_ios
- Youtube: @crunchcare6052
