Woman reveals why she chose to be a 'Venmo mom' instead of volunteering and the internet approves

Parenthood is a joyful experience but raising kids is no child's play as it comes with a lot of responsibilities and major changes in life. One of those responsibilities calls for parents to be involved in the school life of their kids as well. But one mother on the internet has sparked a debate after claiming that she tries her best to not volunteer at her children's schools. Casey Neal, a mother of four who goes by @nealfamilychaos on TikTok, shared a video explaining why she prefers to be a "Venmo mom" rather than dealing with other people's kids.

Neal started by saying, “I don’t know about anyone else out there but meeting the teacher is super stressful because I do not want to be involved at all.” She then added, “I will make sure my kids do their homework and get to school on time but I don’t want to be on PTO, PTA, Room Mom, Team Mom. I don’t want to do any of that. I start getting really stressed when they start asking for volunteers and I'm like, no. I know they're judging me because I'm not raising my hand but I don't wanna do all that extra stuff. I don't wanna come in, I don't wanna set up."

Instead of dealing with children at school, she decided to become the "Venmo mom" whose role is to donate money instead of volunteering. “If the Room Mom needs money for everyone to participate, fine. I’ll Venmo money right over. I do not want to set up for it. I don’t want to do it. I even told one of the coaches today that I am a Venmo Mom.” Neal, who works as a district store manager in Tennessee had a chat with TODAY and explained how some parents made her feel as if she was lazy for not volunteering at her children's schools.

“I constantly traveled for my old job and I never had enough flexibility,” Neal revealed. “I was barely making it to sports practices, competitions and games,” she explained. Her children are attending a new school district this year and Neal had faced a lot of criticism from the moms of her children's classmates at the old one. Neal added that she couldn't accept volunteering responsibilities at the school because of her work hours. 

Thankfully, at the new schools where her kids are going, Neal has already established herself as a "Venmo mom" and the teachers are totally okay with it. She is more than happy to buy communal classroom supplies for the kids and is communicative too but she doesn't want to be "in charge of anything." Neal reveals how moms are always expected to be present for the activities at school. “When kids get hurt at school, the nurse usually calls mom first,” she told the outlet. “It takes a community to make it all happen. Everyone wins.” TikTok viewers also supported her idea of being a "Venmo mom."

@keyleeblain joked, "Ma’am, I’m a teacher and don’t want to be involved in meeting the teacher." @gocatswin wrote, "Everyone has their talents and Venmo is a highly regarded talent!" @ashteg2325 questioned, "In all of this, where are the dads?! Why does the responsibility always fall on the moms?" @punky2022 quipped, "As a teacher, you would be one of my favorite parents, I’m sorry but the room moms I’ve had are so snobby and they gossip. I would’ve just liked you and only you." @ptotoday added, "We say contribute in any way you can to your school community and it makes a difference! Big shout out to all the moms and dads who make the magic and fun stuff happen at schools."

You can follow Casey Neal (@nealfamilychaos) on TikTok for more videos on family and parenting.