Mom Village support group holds first meeting

Brooke Curley Photo/Gila Valley Central: The new Mom Village Group is a non-judgment secular group where opinions, ideas, and parenting techniques are shared.

By Brooke Curley

brooke@gilavalleycentral.net

SAFFORD – When mom needs a break, advice, or just a little bit of social interaction, the Mom Village is the newest mom support group on the Gila Valley scene.

In a world of “Mom Shaming” and judgment everywhere from Facebook to getting side-eye in Wal Mart for breastfeeding, modern moms need support. Elizabeth Henly saw this need in the Gila Valley, and with the support of Safford Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Henly created the Mom Village Group.

The Mom Village Group is a non-judgment secular group where opinions, ideas, and parenting techniques are shared. The first meeting was  Tuesday at 10 a.m. at the air conditioned interior of the Safford Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 301 E. Main St. Children were welcome and snacks were provided. Henly told Gila Valley Central that she valued the non-judgemental discussions within the meeting.

“We had some really great discussions today without judgment with everyone explaining where they come from as a parent,” Henly said. “We’re excited for this new opportunity in the Gila Valley. Today was an amazing first meeting and we’re looking forward to continuing doing this for the community.”

Later, Henly also said she was happy with the attendance of her first group meeting and that she hopes to have presenters every month who will give free lectures and information to the group. Also, Henly told Gila Valley Central that creating a mom group for local mother support has been on her mind for a while.

“My goal in the future is to always have someone presenting,” Henly said. “On a personal level, it’s something that’s been on my mind for a long time to do something kind of like this. And our church right now is doing some new brain storming in ways to serve the community in a new fresh way.”

Brooke Curley Photo/Gila Valley Central: Although the first Mom Village meeting group was small, founder Elizabeth Henly hopes to bring valuable resources to the moms in the Gila Valley.

Discussion topics included:

Schedules
Chores
Positive and negative consequences for misbehavior
Mom frustrations
Teenage drama

Salina Szady, a local birth doula, attended the meeting and told Gila Valley Central that she greatly enjoyed it.

“I had a lot of fun getting out and meeting other moms and basically knowing that you’re not alone in this entire raising-kids business,” Szady said. “I really have to say that one of the best parts of the meeting was that everybody was very supportive of everyone else’s views. There was just support and encouragement for everyone else’s parenting styles, which is really nice.”

In the future, Szady told Gila Valley Central that she hopes the group will grow and become a resource to local moms searching for knowledge, social support, or simply a listening ear.

“I’m hoping to see more moms coming and (having) more resources for every mom to be able to know that they’re not alone and really we all go through a lot of different struggles, but a lot of times they’re the same struggles and we all need to encourage one another,” she said.

Studies show that a mother works roughly 14 hours a day. For that mom who is interested in taking a break, eating a cookie, and talking with some other moms about the roller coaster ride of motherhood,
the next Mom Village Group meeting will be on the first Tuesday of Sept. at 10 a.m., at the Safford Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 301 E. Main St.

For more information on the Mom Village, visit  https://www.facebook.com/Mom-Village-830251930475823/

To stay up to date on future events within the community, visit our EVENTS page. If you want to submit information for an event so it will be placed on our calendar, email the information to events@gilavalleycentral.net. 

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