Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, about 50 percent of Kentucky was already considered a “childcare desert,” meaning there is more demand for the service than there are available spots, and many childcare teachers and providers were already earning poverty wages, even as strapped parents struggled to afford childcare tuition. "A System on Life Support" highlights a unique grassroots effort in Owensboro, KY determined to find a local fix. This group, the Greater Owensboro Partnership for Early Development (GOPED), is comprised of parents, teachers, community leaders, philanthropists, and business partners with one common goal: to not only keep Kentucky’s shaky childcare infrastructure afloat, but to find local solutions that will strengthen the system – for good.