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Kids “freeze” between activities during a session of the Houston Parks and Recreation summer enrichment program at Emancipation Park on Tuesday, June 29, 2021 in Houston.<\/p>\n
Brett Coomer \/ Staff photographer<\/p>\n
Before I weigh in on Houston’s family friendliness, you should know this:\u00a0I love this city<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n I’m a native Houstonian<\/a> who grew up with library cards frayed from use, and spent long afternoons in neighborhood parks, taking free community tennis and swimming lessons, and attending church festivals that brought generations together. There even was a drive-in movie theater a mile away from our home, probably one of the last relics of its kind in the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n Even neighborhoods with limited resources found ways to give kids a place to belong then. Schools were the heartbeat of the community. That’s where you learned to dance, play an instrument, build a rocket out of papier-m\u00e2ch\u00e9\u00a0and discover talents you didn’t know you had. Most of it cost little or nothing at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Whether Houston was family friendly wasn’t something we debated. It simply was.\u00a0Opportunities weren’t reserved for families who could afford it.\u00a0<\/p>\n As a parent, I’ve tried to recreate the childhood that shaped me,\u00a0but Houston feels different now. The libraries and parks are still here, but many of the activities that once welcomed every child now come with registration fees, uniform costs, monthly memberships and long commutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n They’re harder to find and, for many families, harder to afford.\u00a0<\/p>\n TO HOUSTON, WITH JOY:\u00a0A newsletter for a city that’s never simple<\/a><\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n “I’ve often thought there is an information sharing gap, so that if you’re not plugged into the right social media channel or network, you don’t hear about the opportunities that have free or nominal costs for families,” said Brandi Brown, executive director and founder of Hype Freedom School<\/a>, an after-school program focused on literacy. “There’s no central channel, and so many of the families who need resources the most are working every day to provide for their families and don’t have time to research. They also don’t have $300 or $400 for a week of summer camp.”\u00a0<\/p>\n Affordability has become one of Houston’s biggest barriers to being truly family friendly. That reality may not be visible\u00a0from your neighborhood, but\u00a0Houston has the highest poverty rate<\/a> among the country\u2019s 10 most populous cities.<\/p>\n About 21.2% of Houston\u2019s population live below the poverty line, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. That means more than 500,000 Houstonians earn below\u00a0the federal poverty income threshold.\u00a0<\/p>\n “In many areas of the city, it’s pay to play,” Brown said, so if you can’t afford registration costs and even the transportation to get there, you’ll miss out on the enrichment most parents want to give their children.\u00a0<\/p>\n I’ve written about the rising costs of summer camps, <\/a>which are almost a necessity for working parents. A $150 a week camp may sound reasonable compared to child care, but over a 10-week summer, that’s $1,500 for one child. For many families, that’s simply out of reach.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Public parks and community centers have long filled the gap.\u00a0<\/p>\n SEWING COLUMN:\u00a0The headlines told how Lorenzo Salgado Araujo died by ICE. His visitation revealed how he lived.<\/a><\/p>\n