The rock wall, kitchen set and slide at the Community Treehouse in Bayfield offer more than just a play space for kids – the Treehouse offers parents an antidote to isolation.
The Community Treehouse, a program of the Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado, spent most of its first year navigating the coronavirus pandemic. Despite limited programming and some financial setbacks, the Treehouse is focused on its mission: connecting parents in rural areas.
“Especially right now, the Treehouse is becoming that place where parents can find support – where they can take a breath, sit back and have the kids play,” said Nicole Johnson, Treehouse director. “If we can stay afloat like that, that’s all I wish for.”
The Community Treehouse, in the old Bayfield Primary School, offers both play areas for kids and a lounge where parents can work or study.
The families around Bayfield are often spread out, and parents can feel isolated from each other. In the first year, Johnson hoped to create a space where parents could meet each other without feeling awkward or like an outsider.
“When we looked at Bayfield and looked at it being such a rural community, I wanted it to be a place where people could meet their community,” Johnson said. “I’ve always said, it’s really hard to go to your neighbor to get a cup of sugar.”
It seemed to be working: After opening in September 2019, the Treehouse quickly began gaining memberships.
Bayfield has only one preschool, and the Treehouse was becoming a place where preschool-aged children could meet each other. Families would hold celebrations there.
Parents could join community groups, such as Mommy and Me and Kindersprouts. A resource-sharing group started for parents whose children have special needs.
“I love that it’s a space where I can meet other adults, but in a safe environment,” said Clara Johnson, who joined Kindersprouts. Johnson is not related to Nicole Johnson.
She said it helped her “make sure that my mental health, other moms’ mental health is good, just by meeting up, connecting and not isolating.”
For Kristin Dallison, the Treehouse was a place to find the support she needed after the birth of her daughter.
“The Treehouse is the only place left for families to connect during the pandemic,” Dallison said. “Everyone says that ‘it takes a village’ to raise children, and The Treehouse makes that village available to those of us that need it.”
But the Treehouse also had to navigate two closures meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus: one during the statewide shutdown in the spring and one, temporarily, when La Plata County entered the state’s Level Red restrictions in November.
“Now we’re in (Level Red), you can’t make those groups. But those groups are exactly what the Treehouse is all about and what I think the community is looking for,” said Nicole Johnson. “The minute that we are allowed to have groups together again, the Treehouse is just going to explode.”
In December, the Treehouse could start offering 1½-hour reservations for one family at a time, with cleaning in between visits. A caregiver is also available if a parent needs to work in the lounge.
“It’s obviously not our community center right now. But it’s turning into more of – let’s give momma a break,” Johnson said.
Some financial challenges arrived with the pandemic, but Johnson expects the Treehouse will make it through.
Membership numbers did not meet her projections for the first year, and they are declining. Families might not be able to pay, and arriving on time for reservations can be hard with kids, Johnson said.
Payroll is the main concern, she said. Staff members are paid through fundraisers, but the Treehouse cannot hold events that gather people together. Small fundraisers weren’t effective, she said.
“There’s no help for that, besides our individual donors. That’s what’s amazing about Bayfield: Our community members that know how the Treehouse has impacted Bayfield,” Johnson said.
Local grants, support from the Community Foundation, and a rent-free deal with the Bayfield School District that started in 2019 are helping the Treehouse stay afloat.
Johnson’s main focus is on the families. She’ll offer scholarships or let families come to play, even if they have to pause their membership.
“My parents that come to the Treehouse – they’re hurting. They’re really hurting. I would love to make the Treehouse free,” Johnson said.
smullane@durangoherald.com
