Jane Hansen signed up for the Westerly Creek PTA in January to help out at her child’s school. “I am a stay at home mom, so I had some time, and I used to work full time, so I thought this might be a good fit for me,” said Hansen. “Now that my child is in school, I was looking for something to fill this void, and thought the PTA at Westerly would work out great.” Friends at the school also encouraged Jane. “People told me that with my business background and social skills, it would be a fun, part-time thing to focus my energy on. Clearly, the PTA has a strong misunderstanding of what the word part-time means.”
Jane was immediately put to work on different committees, helping to organize auctions and other fundraisers, as well as school activities including plays, concerts, and dances. “It was a lot to take on,” says Hansen. “I thought they would ease me into it, but I was definitely thrown into the fire. I was working almost 60 hours a week dealing with all of the things the school has going on. It ended up being too much, and was really much more than I bargained for. So, I decided to let them know I would be stepping down.”
However, Jane soon found out that leaving the volunteer position wasn’t quite that easy. “I’m not saying there were threats, but it was kind of understood that if I left, it wouldn’t be the best thing for me and my family. There was a buy-out option of $200,000 where they said you could make a clean break, but I couldn’t come up with that kind of money. It would have been easier to quit Scientology. I feel like I am part of The Firm.”
Jane has reluctantly remained on the PTA, and will do so until her sentence is fulfilled. “Once your kid is out of the school they let you out,” said Jane. “The only other options are paying the $200k, or you can recruit two other members. So, I am working on that, but I think the word is out on how hard this volunteer PTA gig is.” If Jane is unable to find two new recruits to fill her spot, she is strongly considering leaving Stapleton. “Right now, the life I have, is no life at all.”
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