3/20/2008
 | photography / Troy Boman
Shannon Burnham holds her two sons (l-r) Griffin and Tristan in front of a picture of the two boys when they were younger. Burnham organized and runs the TooeleMommies network, which provides mothers support and friendship. |
by Abby Palmer
STAFF WRITER
It can be hard trying to find friends when you’re a mother running after little ones all the time. But luckily, a new network in Tooele County, TooeleMommies, aims to bring together members and their children for friendship and support.
The TooeleMommies Network is led by Shannon Burnham, who is a transplant to Tooele County. When she first moved here three and a half years ago, she wanted to become involved, but there wasn’t much for her to do here. So, she joined SaltLakeCityMommies.
“SaltLakeCityMommies was nice, but some moms didn’t want to have to drive into Salt Lake to attend,” she said. “I wanted to do something for mommies in Tooele to take advantage of.”
So, Burnham, a stay-at-home mother with two children, opened the TooeleMommies Network on Jan. 7. The network covers Grantsville and Tooele.
The objective of the group is to “help people make friends, support each other and help moms get involved in the community,” Burnham said.
Members of TooeleMommies come from different backgrounds. Some work full time, others are stay-at-home mothers, and others work part time. The group also consists of mothers with one child, those who are pregnant with their first child, or those with multiple children.
The group generally meets once a week for playgroups, for either older children or younger children. Meeting times vary, as well as meeting places. The group has met at fast-food restaurants or at one another’s homes.
“We go wherever we can have a playgroup,” she said, adding this summer the group plans to attend different museums in town.
Burnham said she lived in Tooele a year before having many friends here. But now, through the network, all that has changed.
“I love meeting all the people,” she said. “I now have lots of new friends.”
Tooele resident Robyn Fish agreed.
“I love that the other mommies have been in Tooele forever,” she said. “They can answer my questions about almost anything. They’re great people.”
Fish began with SaltLakeCityMommies a year ago, but started attending TooeleMommies when Burnham first formed the group. She has two children and is expecting her third in June.
Tooele resident Gail Garrard has been with TooeleMommies for two months.
“I love meeting new moms,” Garrard said. “It’s great meeting moms who have children the same age as mine.”
And now, just several months after its formation, TooeleMommies has more than 140 members.
According to its Web site, www.tooelemommies.com, their mission is “to provide a safe, secure, free place for mothers to find support and encouragement from other mothers and to empower them to be better women, parents and community leaders.”
“We have online forums where we chat with one another,” Burnham said. “We discuss everything from the best photographers to the worst temper tantrums and all that lies between — and meet up regularly at member-driven events around town.”
There is no fee associated with this group, and free membership is offered to any mother within the community who wants to join.
Support is available for the mothers through an online forum available 24 hours a day. Mothers can also meet with each other and develop friendships as they get together for events in the area.
The group’s philosophy states, “We believe that, working together, mothers can change the world — one family, one neighborhood, one community at a time. TooeleMommies is a connecting force, helping us each to make a difference in our own lives, in our families and in the places we call home,” according to tooelemommies.com.
For more information about TooeleMommies, or to register to become a member, visit its Web site at www.tooelemommies.com.
apalmer@tooeletranscript.com |
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