Women to get Personal Mashpia

“I am from out-of- town – my mentor has given me much needed support and friendship.”

“Thanks to my mentor I was able to have a stress free Purim Holiday – my whole family enjoyed themselves.”

In the spring of 2010 Yeled V’Yalda saw a need and acted on it. Mother to Mother, more commonly known as M2M, was launched as a pilot program, beginning with the Crown Heights community. M2M’s mission is to provide one-to-one mentoring for mothers. The goal of M2M is to strengthen mothers, thus improving outcomes for their children. YVY understood that by teaching parenting strategies, we empower our mothers and in the process build a more positive family environment.

We can all agree, that in today’s world, who can’t use some wise counsel and words of experience? Mother to Mother provides women with a caring, supportive volunteer who offers guidance, assistance and friendship. Mentors have an impact by serving as a positive role model. Some of the mentees lack the resources of an effective support network. Our volunteer mentors fill that void, understanding that mothers and their families are more successful when they have a safety net of compassionate people around them.

Peer mentoring is a unique form of mentoring. M2M began by recruiting mothers from the community and matching the appropriate mentors with their mentees. We now have over sixty pairs that meet in an informal setting or speak on the phone 2-4 times a month. M2M continues to train and support our volunteers through various mentor training sessions, always stressing trust and the utmost in confidentiality. We offer workshops with social workers and trained professionals. At these sessions volunteers are encouraged to role play so that they gain ideas and insights from other mentors. Studies have shown that the rewards are mutual for both mentors and mentees.

Most importantly, mentoring involves active listening. Sometimes one needs to share the burdens of responsibility with someone outside their own circle. The volunteer mother helps her mentee develop skills and capabilities to initiate and continue positive lifestyle changes. By coming together to support each other’s goals M2M empowers other women to effect meaningful and positive change. Good mentoring leads to better decisions, goal setting, motivation and confidence. The mentors are actively involved in helping the mothers by connecting them with available resources, whether through YVY or local organizations.

Many of the mentees have expressed their gratitude and appreciation for the role the mentors are having in their lives. We are pleased to report that Mother to Mother is forging new bonds and building friendships within the women of the community. The positive impact of ongoing mentoring relationships is reaching far beyond a single family to the schools and the entire neighborhood.

Giving time to another is perhaps the most important gift any of us can make. The encouragement we provide, the counsel we share and the example we set helps build the foundation of other homes and families. Thanks to YVY we continue to realize our goal of helping mothers and their families.

Ella Lerman
Fradie Laufer

Mother to Mother has two unique programs:
Connect and Share: through our peer-mentoring program, M2M provides a new and special relationship with a volunteer mother who is an experienced parent. She offers guidance, support and friendship. Confidential meetings take place once a week, either face to face or on the phone. Currently, there are 80 pairs of women, who are enthusiastic about the M2M program.

Chat and Learn: Led by facilitators, small groups of mothers meet twice a month to speak openly about the joys and challenges of parenting. These groups are run by and for its members, who determine the topics for discussion. this provides an opportunity for members to help each other through the sharing of knowledge and experience.

Through Yeled v’Yalda, M2M is able to offer resources, speakers, information and literature for our mothers.

For more information, or to join any of M2M’s programs please call 718-686-2316, or email us at elerman@yeled.org or flaufer@yeled.org