COLORADO SPRINGS — Mothers of Preschoolers, better known as MOPS International, is now creating a virtual community full of resources.
“We are all experiencing something that no one has ever experienced before, and so it’s a really awesome time for us to link arms,” said Mandy Arioto, President and CEO of MOPS International.
While the nonprofit does have membership fees for group meetings, MOPS is now offering free content online; All in an effort to help moms navigate through stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Every Tuesday in April, we are going to have live support group meetings for moms. And basically, it’s just where we can come together, we are going to hear from a speaker and talk about some topics that are really relevant as we’re all at home and doing things that we’ve never done before,” Arioto said.
Topics range from talking to kids about anxiety, how to handle your own anxiety, working with technology, and more.
It’s a virtual community to bring moms together.
“I think what we’re all recognizing is we all need each other now more than ever. And so, even though we’re disconnected, we want to create unique pathways for us to connect and to feel like we’re in it with the moms next door, even though we can’t see each other face to face,” Arioto said.
According to MOPS, thousands of moms in Colorado are involved in the organization, with 150,000 moms across the country.
Globally, MOPS is connected to 67 countries.
“If you need some support, if you need to hear ‘me too’ from some other moms and recognize that we are all doing the best we can right now,” Arioto said.
MOPS’ content isn’t limited to just preschoolers, as they have content for all ages.
“We actually even have content for grandparents right now. So, we know that a lot of grandparents are actively involved and they have kids in the home with them right now. So, we have content for moms who are pregnant, all the way through women who are grandparenting right now,” Arioto said.
Once we move past the coronavirus crisis, MOPS is planning to hold their MOMcon in Aurora this September.
Click here for more details on their MOMcon.