My group's meeting is closed period. We have turned away parents with kids, and kid's with parents. This would seem contrary to what I have posted about my own experience, but actually I agree with and stand by the closed status of a group.
Closed meetings are for AA members or for someone seeking help for their drinking problem. I believe this is one area that my group should not bend in. The whole reason closed meetings were started was AA members wanting to have meetings away from their spouses and kids.
By the way Taz, the newcomer isn't the most important person in the room. No one is the most important person in the room. The traditions are about unity and the good of the group comes before the good of the individual and if I were more important than you, where's the unity there?
Jim