Every member family is required to complete a few shifts at Tiny Tots every term. This helps us keep costs low while also keeping the playground clean and safe, both for our members and for the church where we’re hosted.

Shifts consist of opening and closing duties, substitute duty, toy cleanings, and member contributions (volunteer time).

Opening and Closing: The playground needs to be set up and taken down by a member every day that it’s open. Opening consists mostly of pulling out the large play pieces (foam pool, roller coasters, and mats) for the east side of the room. Closing requires putting those pieces away and generally tidying the playground (vacuuming, taking out the trash, etc.) The playground needs to be closed promptly each afternoon because the church rents half of our space to other community groups every single night! When we can’t close, those groups have to put our things away — and they don’t know where anything goes, so we risk damage to our equipment.

The precise number of opens/closes required of members changes based on enrollment. The more families we have, the fewer duties for everyone! As always, children are welcome to accompany you to any shift.

Once you sign up, you’ll receive an e-mail to remind you about your upcoming shift the night before.

Substitute Duty: When illness or emergency strikes, we want to make sure that we support our member families. That means making sure we have a backup in place to complete the necessary Tiny Tots shifts. When we have enough members, every day has at least one substitute signed up. As of now, we do not have enough members to have substitute duties, so please be mindful about putting your duties in your calendar so you do not miss your shift. 

If a member isn’t able to close the playground, every effort will be made to find a trade or volunteer to close the playground. However, when there’s a sudden change, the substitute will come in to make sure the playground gets closed. Please only sign up for substitute duties on days when you’re able to close the playground on short notice.

Substitutes will be called or texted (depending on your preference) when the closer arrives at the playground. This lets a sub know s/he doesn’t need to report to the playground that evening. However, if the closer is unable to make it to his/her shift and the substitute doesn’t receive a call, after trying to contact the closer, the substitute should go to the playground to close.

Toy Cleanings: The entire playground is thoroughly cleaned every 5-8 days to keep things safe and healthy for our children. Members are required to participate in one toy cleaning every month. These usually take place on evenings or late afternoons when we can schedule around the church’s use.

Whenever possible, we use non-toxic cleaning supplies and as much reusable material as we can for our cleanings.

Member Contributions: Because we are a cooperative, non-profit playground committed to keeping costs low, the playground can only run with support from our members. We have a variety of opportunities for members to support the playground both financially and behind the scenes. Non-financial support includes assistance with events like our carnivals and field trips, help with marketing efforts, discussion with other groups about their Tiny Tots experiences and maintenance efforts like painting or repairing toys.