Cohousing-L Mailing List: RE: Giving or Taking

[Alison Truesdale (alisont]

I hope I can offer a simple alternative to the
community-payment-for-childcare issue.  Here at Two Echo Cohousing, we have
almost always had volunteers among the members who do childcare during
meetings.  Our meeting schedule is set up every quarter and the volunteers
are assigned to particular dates (along with the facilitator, recorder and
snack provider) after they have notified the scheduler of any dates when
they are not available.  If something comes up and a person can't perform
their job, or if the agenda demands that someone signed up for childcare
attend the meeting, they are responsible for finding a replacement.  Only
one member of a partnered household will be asked to do childcare on any
particular day so that the other can attend the meeting.  We have two single
parents (I am one of them).  I like to attend meetings, the other doesn't
seem to care to attend much.  She does more childcare than I do, but I am
asked to do it once or twice a year, which is certainly not asking much. I
am glad to do it and trust the group to manage without me! :-)

The benefits are obvious.  The children are regularly looked after by
non-parents and everyone gets to know each other better.  There is no
expense.  Currently, we are dividing the children into two groups that are
looked after by two teams of childcare providers (we have 22 childcare-aged
children!).  This brings children together on a regular basis that would not
ordinarily play with each other.  We are able to keep potentially disruptive
pairs apart this way, too.  Parents have donated toys and project materials
for the childcare people to work with (we don't have a common house yet).
Childcare is hosted by one of the providers so that they can monitor
happenings in their house.

Although this means that childcare providers do not attend the meeting, no
one has said that they feel excluded from general meeting business because
of it.  During the meeting, a partner will speak for the one doing childcare
if it's important enough.  The only glitch is that we strive for 100%
attendance when we have "process" meetings, when we devote one or two
meetings exclusively to process issues.  Then we need to hire out childcare.
The liability issue is an interesting one that I had not thought of.  I look
forward to people's responses on that one.

Alison Truesdale
Two Echo, Brunswick, Maine

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