Staff Report
When a woman becomes a mother for the first time, more seasoned mothers often tell her to branch out and connect with other moms as often as she can — to avoid feeling isolated and disconnected from other adults and the world outside of her children.
The nonprofit organization SYV Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) has been operating for more than 40 years and has been chartered locally by the Santa Ynez Valley Presbyterian Church for more than 20 years.
The meetings take place from 9:15 – 11:45 a.m. on the second and fourth Thursdays of every month, starting Sept. 14 and going through May.
“Here at MOPS we gather and support moms in our community. We believe that well-taken-care-of moms make a better world. This is a great way to meet new moms in the SYV community,” said Shannon Strange, coordinator of this year’s leadership team.
MOPS is a place for women to come, on the good days and the awful ones, to be with other mothers who are in the same stage of parenting and life, she added.
The staples at every meeting include good food, great people, and excessive amounts of coffee, she said, but every MOPS meeting is a little different from the last.
Before the morning starts, parents drop their children off at MOPPETS, the childcare program run by volunteers.
Every meeting has a theme or topic that relates to being a parent or a woman in general. Sometimes there’s a craft, and quite often that craft is geared towards helping others, such as decorating onesies or making blankets as donations for organizations in need. Moms are given ample time to talk, share, and just enjoy one another’s company.
Go to www.syvmops.com or email info@syvmops.com to get more information or to register for the upcoming MOPS year. The cost is $120 for the year (or $60 a semester) and includes all meetings, childcare, materials from MOPS International, supplies for activities and crafts, and a number of other benefits. Scholarships are available as needed.
SYV MOPS is also looking for more sponsors to help them be a community and resource for moms. Email info@syvmops.com for more information.
