Mentor program for mums: support, sisterhood and smash rooms
Motherhood can be isolating – but a beloved local community space is creating connection, increasing optimism and celebrating fun while teaching young mums about parenthood and life after baby.
The Family Place in Woodridge runs an annual BUMP program, offering support and mentoring to mums who are pregnant or who have a young baby or child.
Mums and mums-to-be under 25 are paired with a mentor for the 26-week program, which involves weekly 3.5-hour sessions at The Family Place.
‘We see some amazing connections and firm friendships form among the mums who attend, which last until well after BUMP has finished,’ programs manager Michelle Christensen says.
Each week the group unpacks different topics – from cooking on a budget, to legal advice, financial advice, advocating for yourself, healthy relationships, talks from PCYCs, midwives – along with make-up and hair tutorials, laser tag, drumming, crafts, a vision board session and an excursion to a smash room.
The group also travels into Brisbane to visit Dressed For Success, an organisation that provides women with clothe to wear for jobs and job interviews.
‘They focus on helping women prepare for employment, and while that might not be front of mind for many of our mums, we want them to think long term – so, just because you are 17 and pregnant, this could still be you in a power suit ready for a career,’ Michelle says.
‘The world is still yours – it’s about that dreaming and optimism for the future.
‘We want to make sure our mums have fun and feel good and feel empowered to take on motherhood.’
Michelle says mentors provide a crucial role.
‘Our mentors undergo training as well as debriefs after each weekly session to ensure they are supported,’ she says.
‘For our mums with babies, they are an extra pair of hands, and offer advice, help and support; they help answer the many questions our mums are likely to have.
‘A lot of young mums don’t have a healthy relationship with another adult woman to ask those sorts of questions, so the mentors have a really important role.’
The Family Place team has, in fact, seen many come back more than once to be a mentor – and many mums have wanted to repeat the program, too.
Michelle says after the program finishes – during which time many mums give birth and are invariably keen to return to the group with their newborns – there is a ‘massive graduation ceremony’.
Mentors are currently being sought for the next program, which begins 27 April. Mentors need to be available on Thursday mornings for 26 weeks. Michelle says the right mentor is matched with the right mum.
‘We call the first 3 weeks ‘the jitters’ – everyone is nervous and uncomfortable so we play ice breaker games; from that, as well as what we know beforehand about each person, we can see who would work best as a match,’ she says.
‘We have lots of repeat mentors.
‘It’s just people who love giving back to their community, there are psychologists and social workers who are currently not working, and we also have mums with older kids who have found that this is something they love and they have gone on to further study in this space.
‘There is often a real sense of finding themselves and it can be quite emotional at the end.’
To find out more about becoming a mentor, contact The Family Place on 3208 1263 or email Michelle on michelle.christensen@salvationarmy.org.au before the end of March.
