When we first moved to Texas in 2007, I was starting a new job on Monday and had no childcare for my five children, who ranged in age from 10 to 2. I was panicking. My husband and I didn’t know anyone in Dallas when we uprooted our lives and moved there.

So, the Saturday before I started my new job, I saw a girl in Walmart who looked friendly. I walked up to her and said, “I know this is going to sound a little crazy, because you don’t know me, but I’m desperate. Do you know anyone who will babysit five children?” She smiled and said, “My mama babysits.”

This girl took my husband and me to her mother’s home and introduced us. Her mom, Miss Janice, watched all five of my kids that summer for $350 a week. Miss Janice also babysat her grandchildren, who lived across the street. My children were well fed and cared for by a total stranger, and it was the kindest thing anyone had ever done for me. It was a true village moment.

Tiffany Warren,