Making room for play: South Hadley mom creates meetup group to connect local families

SOUTH HADLEY — Playgroup options close to home are limited for working mother Steph Clymer.

The closure of the South Hadley Family Center a couple of years ago left only a handful of options for Clymer and her 2-year-old son Dax. Morning playgroups conflict with the Clymers’ work schedule, and most afternoon groups are at least 30 minutes away in Northampton, Easthampton and Amherst, which is a difficult drive for young children.

Clymer realized if she wanted a local family playgroup, she’d have to make it herself. So she did just that earlier this year, creating a group called South Hadley Family Meetups and promoting the idea on Facebook. Five months later, 150 people have joined.

Under Clymer’s leadership, the gatherings include family-friendly nature walks and local events around town. Families across the Pioneer Valley meet at South Hadley destinations like Buttery Brook Park and the Woodlawn Playground for short, low-cost socialization opportunities.

“A lot of parents have said how excited they are to have a group nearby, [and] how excited they are to meet other parents and other people with young kids,” Clymer said. “It’s really nice to be able to connect with others in a similar situation, and then for our kids to socialize as well.”

Gatherings are generally based on the interests of Clymer’s son, like a trip to the playground or a ride on Pioneer Valley Transit Authority buses. But South Hadley Family Meetups Oct. 3 event celebrated the cool weather with a gathering at McCray’s Farm for an autumn hayride to the pumpkin patch.

Bundled in flannel and puffer jackets, 12 parents and children waited for the tractor to roar to life. Younger children squirmed in their seats, confused by their parents’ restraints. But as soon as the tractor began to chug down the path, they settled in, eyes fixed ahead on the big-wheeled vehicle and passing sunflower fields. 

A couple of the parents learned about the hayride directly through Clymer. Bryn and Leland Reimer have organized playdates with Dax for their son, Evan, since they were little. Playgroup availability is not an issue for the Northampton residents, thanks to the Northampton Parent Center and Easthampton Family Center. Yet even the Reimers find that weekend family meetups are few and far between.

“There’s so many things to do in the Valley, but to go with other parents is trickier,” Bryn said.

For the Rivers family, of South Hadley, weekend events like this trip to McCray’s are the only days that work. Janelle River works during the day, and her husband Chris River’s shifts begin at night. Their split schedule isolates them from other weekday family events, and weekend meetups often conflict with their son Wes’s nap times.

South Hadley Family Meetups not only offers activities at a good time, but the events are both low commitment and low cost, they said.

“Everything is low key and short so it feels really manageable and accessible,” Janelle said.

In the pumpkin patch, Janelle River and Clymer exchanged smiles and quick conversation while their partners picked out a pumpkin with their sons. There is little time to talk at the South Hadley Family Meetups with such young children running free. But for River, even watching other parents interact with children’s fickle behavior normalizes her own challenges.

“I definitely feel like I can be myself,” she said. “That’s hard as a mom.”

Attendance at events is small in the group’s infancy, typically ranging from three to 10 people. While most attendees are new parents and their young children, River said that grandparents and seniors have joined them. Clymer adds the group welcomes all ages.

“I think something else that’s been really nice is that we can learn from each other,” Clymer said. “So when one of us is struggling with something that’s going on in this stage of parenting or child development, then we can share ideas and say, ‘Oh, this worked for me.'”

As the weather cools, Clymer will need more parent and grandparent volunteers to organize indoor events. She is looking for walk leaders and hosts experienced in parenting and early childhood education. Interested volunteers can email Clymer at southhadleyfamilymeetups@gmail.com.