Last spring, several mothers of Yorkville’s St. Patrick Parish formed a new ministry with the goal of bringing together moms with children of all ages.
Called MOMs — for Ministry of Mothers — the group offers mom-to-mom support with a focus on Marian virtues, service projects, study events and guest speakers.
At each meeting, mothers who have college-age children or older serve as mentors for other mothers, St. Patrick Parish member MaryBeth Jakstys said.
These moms can help mothers with younger children with some of the trials they may be having, she added.
Through sharing of experiences, Jakstys said, the group hopes mothers can relate to each other and understand that they are not alone.
Jakstys, along with Valerie Padilla, was instrumental in forming the ministry at St. Patrick. The group now has about 40 members and will be starting a new study series on Thursday.
For its fall series, the group will focus on the DVD study series “Hoodwinked” by Karen Ehman and Ruth Schwenk.
This study series will touch on myths of motherhood and offers advice and encouragement, Jakstys said.
“We need to look beyond certain parenting myths, such as moms do everything, or that there is only one way to be a good mother,” she said.
After watching the video, members will divide up into small discussion groups led by the mentor moms, Padilla said.
When the group started, the founding members expected large groups of mothers with preschool children. Jakstys, who has children who range from first grade to eighth grade, said the largest percentage of members so far are parents of middle-school children.
The group is for moms with children of any age, Jakstys said.
“We even have three grandmothers that come to our meetings,” she said.
There have been some meetings where moms will rush in and say they almost didn’t come because they had the worst morning, Jakstys said.
“Those are the mornings where moms have to come, because we all have been there, and it is nice to share experiences with other moms. It makes us all feel normal,” she said.
Padilla said the goal of the group is to sanctify families and for the participants to become the best versions of themselves as wives and mothers.
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“It has been fun to meet with like-minded moms and create new friendships and fellowship,” she said.
Padilla explained that after her first child, she found herself praying to Mary for health and encouragement.
“It was the most comforting thing for me at the time,” she said.
Cathy Janek is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News
Ministry of Mothers
When: Fall session begins Thursday and will go from 9 to 11 a.m. The group will meet every other week on Thursday mornings (Sept. 22, Oct. 6 and 20, Nov. 3 and 17 and Dec. 1 and 15).
Where: Parish Center at St. Patrick parish, 406 Walnut St., Yorkville
Children: Child care is not provided at the meetings, but children are welcome to attend.