<p>The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionally affected parents with young children whose incomes are below the federal poverty threshold. However, studies examining life changes related to parents’ mental well-being due to pandemic effects are limited. In addition, given the racial disparities in mental health established in prior literature, clarifying the role of race in the relationships between life changes and parents’ mental well-being may help identify culturally responsive interventions that support racially/ethnically diverse families in crisis. Therefore, using a cross-sectional survey, this descriptive and exploratory study examined the impact of COVID-19 on the life changes of 408 English-speaking parents of preschool children whose incomes were below the federal poverty threshold. Half of the parents indicated that the pandemic had a negative impact on their life, including loss of employment, financial difficulty, difficulty accessing food, and challenges with finding childcare. While some parents reported feeling closer to their children, the majority felt more stressed, anxious, and depressed after the pandemic started. Not surprisingly, physical activity and better parent-child relationships were associated with reduced levels of stress and depression in parents in addition to access to childcare support. Interestingly, the negative impact of the pandemic was more correlated with White parents’ stress, anxiety, and depression than Black parents. During the post-pandemic phase, providing parental support to improve family cohesion and interactions is promising in minimizing stress, anxiety, and depression. Results from this study should be interpreted with caution due to the nature of the cross-sectional design and use of self-report data from parents.</p>