cutting edge journalism of 1996

This hoot was originally printed in the CHHS yearbook in 1997

“Coming from a Large Family”
by: Shoshana Portnoy

Senior Eben Cook waits in line for the shower each morning. Eben shares the house he lives in with nine other family members. Two of his siblings go to school with him.

It all started when Eben was thirteen. It all started when Eben was thirteen. His parents divorced and his father remarried. His older brother Adam was sixteen and his sister Naomi was eleven. Eben’s stepmother brought three children of her own into the marriage—Clair who was ten, Sara eleven, and Andy thirteen. Then Eben’s father and Nancy had two children together; Ian three and Owen one.

“I resented the situation at first but after four years I have now adjusted,” said Eben. Maintaining a family that large is quite a job and likewise it operates like a business. All the kids have chores that rotate by the week.

A simple everyday occurrence like dinner iw quite a process. One child is assigned to cook the meal, while one sets the table. Then all ten family members sit around a very large table and eat and talk. After the meal, another child does the dishes.

“Although this may look like a family too large for individuality, my father and stepmother do see us as individuals,” said Eben. The children’s interests in their activities are encouraged by the family.
Being in such a large family does have its advantages. A member will never be lonely and friends can come stay the night and there are so many kids anyway the parents do not notice one or two extra guests.