Some People Agree To Disagree Over What’s Safe During The Pandemic

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This photo from a trip last November shows the friends and family members whom Danielle Zonis (third from right) has chosen to quarantine with during the coronavirus pandemic. She started a Facebook group for others to discuss the choices they’re making to stay safe.

Courtesy of Danielle Zonis

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Courtesy of Danielle Zonis

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«My kids are really active, and we live in a townhouse community with a lot of other kids their age who they’re used to playing with all the time,» Dougherty says.

She let her kids continue to play outside because she didn’t want them in front of a screen all day. But a few other parents nearby chose to keep their kids indoors. Dougherty says one mother criticized her decision on social media.

«She posted a very ranting post saying that the parents who were allowing the kids in our neighborhood to play outside were awful parents and were contributing to other people dying,» she says.

Dougherty says she responded harshly to that post, so it has been awkward with that neighbor since.

She handled a situation with another neighbor who had a related complaint differently. Dougherty says that neighbor contacted her directly via text. She says the two disagreed but talked openly, resolved their dispute and remain friends.

In Sicklerville, N.J., Danielle Zonis has taken a very cautious approach for her family during the pandemic — wearing masks and consistently maintaining distance are important to her.

«I can count seven times that I have been out of my house,» Zonis says. She visits only with a tight circle of relatives and friends.

Zonis says she even declined wedding and baby shower invitations.

«There was no taking into consideration how the food would be prepared, where everybody would sit,» she says. «I want to know how we’re going to be stay apart from each other but still try to be together.»

Zonis was surprised to see complaints on Facebook over things like having to wear a mask in stores.

«I wasn’t sure if other people were feeling like me or if I was crazy,» says Zonis. She asked a couple of friends on Facebook if they were as nervous about the pandemic as she is and found a group of like-minded people. They decided to launch the Facebook group «So…Are we still COVIDing?»

Within a few weeks, Zonis’ group had several hundred people from across the country, many of them navigating coronavirus conflicts. They share news and science articles, ask each other questions and share tips about the best ways to stay safe during the pandemic.