Tonya Jones Would Like to See More Support for Older Parents

Story By: Bruce Poinsette

Illustration By: Paola De La Cruz

This story is made possible by a grant from the Oregon Community Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced many parents to to leave their jobs because of the prospect of their children being home all day with no one to look after them. Tonya Jones was one of those parents. Her son is now 6 years old and goes to KairosPDX, a culturally specific charter school, but she’s still primarily unemployed, finding occasional temp work from home, but mostly relying on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) support. In particular, Jones says rental assistance from TANF was crucial.

“Rent got paid for 4 months so that helped a lot,” she says.

TANF also provides support for childcare but Jones still has to find transportation, which is particularly challenging as a single mother without regular access to a vehicle. They use public transportation and sometimes Lyft if the weather is too bad, but Jones tries to find people who can help drop off her son and pick him up. All three options accumulate to being a major cost.

She also laments how safety measures have added even more costs to her budget. In particular, she says they are constantly running out of masks.

“You never thought in your life that would be a cost,” says Jones. “There’s the pencil, the binder. Now you have to have masks too.”

She was very intentional in choosing KairosPDX when it was time to send her son to school. Between the relatively small class sizes and focus on dismantling structural racism, Jones felt the school would be ideal. It was also reminiscent of how she grew up.

Her family moved to Portland from Arkansas in the 80s when Jones was in kindergarten. Her neighborhood was predominantly Black and she went to daycare centers in the area. She would also stay with aunties and her stepdad. At the schools she attended, which included Humboldt, Tubman and Vernon, her teachers were primarily Black.

KairosPDX’s impetus on working with Black and Brown students was a key factor in choosing the school for her son. She notes the curriculum and recent lessons, such as one on African Kingdoms, are especially valuable.

“They try really hard to make it empowering for students,” says Jones.

When she envisions an ideal childcare system, she sees childcare being universal. Prior to being unemployed, Jones worked at Multnomah County, where the most support they could offer was 12 weeks paid family leave. Like numerous other parents, she likely would have stayed if the support was there.

“It’s not like they don’t want to work, but it’s like, who’s gonna take care of your kid?,” says Jones.

She would also like to see more support for parents who don’t have immediate family or previously established caregiver networks. As an older parent, she doesn’t think these issues get enough attention.

“All my friends, their kids are grown,” says Jones. “Some of them are grandparents now.

“I don’t have family I can turn to. Usually I have to rely on strangers.”