Sometimes, a mom takes a sabbatical from work in order to focus on her children and family—but that doesn’t mean she no longer has skills to contribute or a yearning for a “professional” network of mothers who are on a similar journey in life!

In 2013, Susan Husa, a local mom of two children, saw a need for a professional networking group for moms in the Snoqualmie Valley so she rallied friends, asked Encompass for support and pulled it together last September in the form of a new parenting support group called Moms which falls within the Encompass Parenting Education and Support program. The group was such a success that it was voted 1^st runner up as “Most-Loved Parenting Support Group” by Macaroni Kid readers and the officers were recognized in June by the Snoqualmie Valley Community Network and the King County City Council for commitment and inspiration to community.

You can enjoy the results of Susan’s vision the 3rd Tuesday of the month (Sep – May) from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. at Snoqualmie Valley Alliance Church. The next meeting is Tuesday, Oct 21 and focuses on tips to raise an emotionally-healthy child—we hope to see you there! More details here.

While the officers of Moms strive to build community, they also hope to inspire every mother to know she has skills that are appreciated and needed! If you are a mom that wants to refresh your skills or learn new ones, Moms and Encompass are interested in your contribution of time, energy and creativity. Lisa Yeager, Manager of the Volunteer Program at Encompass, would love to chat with you to explore ways you might use your interests, hobbies and skills to nurture children, enrich families and inspire community. You can contact her at lisa.yeager@encompassnw.org or call 425-888-2777.

If you’re still uncertain, read more about how the officers of Moms donate their time.

The Moms planning team is comprised of a handful of local stay-at-home and working mothers with children ranging in age from 2 to teens! Susan has a background in Management Development. She was joined by Laura Rosner, who created the social media presence via Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest and has a background in wealth management and private banking. She was assisted by Colleen Burin, a content strategist for Microsoft and, as of July, a staff member at Encompass (communications). Janelle Coughran, has a Master’s Degree in education and experience in marketing and public relations. She coordinates the marketing for the moms group while being on the SVA staff. Recently, this amazing team of ladies was joined by Denise Myers, a former district manager of Walgreens and currently a personal executive leadership and teams coach as well as business owner of YBR COACH.com (coaching talent combined with business consulting company).

Kerry Beymer (parenting education and support) and Rochelle Clayton-Strunk (education programs) from Encompass round out the team as advisors. This team hopes to welcome, inform and inspire every mother in the Valley through its meetings, its content on social media and via the friends you make through the group.

MORE ABOUT MOMS
Moms is an authentic group that includes all mothers and engages its members with respect. It is a place to connect with peers, be informed and inspired. Moms provides resources that 1) supports her as the primary caretaker of her children and 2) helps her to cultivate a home environment grounded in love and respect. Led by professional speakers and community leaders, the topics discussed during Moms monthly meetings facilitate each woman’s desire to improve in her role and provide insight to newsworthy events in the community. Moms meets monthly on the 3rd Tuesday of each month September – May at 9:30am. Our meeting space is made available by Snoqualmie Valley Alliance in Fall City.

Is there an upcoming event or company that local moms should know about? If the answer is “yes”, post it on the Facebook page of Moms at www.Facebook.com/MomsSnoqualmieValley. We rely on the community to keep us informed of the amazing opportunities in the area for families—and we are happy to get your message in front of the 500+ local mothers who follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

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Lisa Yeager is the Volunteer Program Manager at Encompass. You can contact her at lisa.yeager@encompassnw.org or call 425-888-2777. She believes every person who walks through the doors of Encompass to give time, energy, creativity, money, skills or items is a donor. These contributions to this organization, children and families supports the Encompass mission to nurture children, enrich families and inspire community.

Providing opportunities for everyone to get involved is a priority for Encompass—we couldn’t do it without you and we are grateful. We have a dedicated Volunteer Manager here to show you all the ways to become part of the Encompass family and help make dreams come true within our community.