MOMS Club

August 2024 Issue

by Edwina Hoyle
Photography by Cassidy Dunn Photography

 

Lindsey Gleason and her husband, Joe, have a two-year old son named Jordan who will become a big brother in a few months because Lindsey is six months pregnant. Leaving her teaching job when Jordan was born, she experienced the hard realization that it’s difficult to keep your work friends when you’re not with them anymore.

Lindsey first moved to the Lowcountry when she was in middle school. “It was a huge cultural shock coming from New York. When I moved back after college at Penn State, it was hard at first to adjust, starting over with new adult friendships through work. Family is thankfully around, but I wanted kids Jordan’s age around, too. After joining MOMS Club, both Jordan and I have gained friendships. MOMS Club members are like family.”

MOMS Club of Bluffton and Hilton Head has nearly 50 members, many of whom have relocated to the Lowcountry, which means parents and grandparents aren’t nearby to help. As a stay-at-home mom, Lindsey recalled the saying that it takes a village to raise a child. “I kept thinking, where is the village? Then I realized that MOMS Club is a village where we build relationships with others who are in the same place in life. That’s what they’re talking about—leaning on each other for support.”

MOMS Club International has been around for almost 40 years, and the Bluffton/Hilton Head chapter was founded in 2016. Lindsey is the current president.

It’s those long, daytime hours that can be so difficult for at-home mothers. That’s why the MOMS Club holds activities during the day, when at-home mothers most need
the support.

The club hosts between two and five play dates each week, where both the children and the moms get their socialization. Sometimes mothers host play dates in their homes with a craft, activity, or plenty of toys. Others gather at playgrounds, go to story times, or host a pool party. Some of the outings take the group to local events such as the Critter Meet and Greet at Coastal Discovery Museum. Lindsey said one of the most well-attended events each year is visits to both Hilton Head and Bluffton Fire Departments where the children are thrilled to see the fire trucks.

For a bit of self-care, the group hosts a monthly moms’ night out. Sometimes it’s dinner out or a getaway to a local event. They’ve gone to a dance class a’la champagne, a candle making class, and a wine and design art session. These events are planned well in advance so members can sign up. Members also help one another with a meal train when a mother has a new baby. This past May, a photographer who is a past member, donated free Mother’s Day photo sessions to members because she wanted to give back to the organization.

Philanthropy projects are an integral part of MOMS Club. Each chapter plans at least one service project to benefit needy children in their community. This can be as simple as collecting toys at Christmastime for foster children to something as elaborate as planning fundraisers and creating a new playground or helping a new wing of a children’s hospital, according to MOMS Club International.

The Mother-To-Mother Fund is the only official MOMS Club International charity and is solely supported by donations from the local chapters. Because of donations from chapters and volunteers in the past, they have been able to offer grants for emergency expenses to MOMS Club mothers suffering from devastating financial and
natural disasters.

Locally, the MOMS Club of Bluffton and Hilton Head s committed to projects benefiting children and mothers. They have made financial contributions to the Child Abuse Prevention Association (CAPA). The chapter has participated in a 5K Race for Love to benefit Hopeful Horizons; and they have collected diapers and clothes for the Pregnancy Center. Lindsey is very proud of the fact that the MOMS Club also donated money to a local cheerleader who is battling cancer.

With all they do, Lindsey said, “We are like a sorority for moms. That’s a good analogy.”

 

Join the Club:

Dues: Membership dues for MOMS Club are $25 per year. Paid members receive a monthly newsletter and calendar of events.

Meet & Greet: MOMS Club holds monthly open houses to introduce other at-home moms to the organization. August Open House: August 29 at 9:30 a.m. at the Port Royal Sound Maritime Museum. Open to current and potential new members.

MOMS Club Officers: Lindsey Gleason, President; VP of Administration, Meredith Telmos; Secretary, Carly O’Keefe; VP of Membership, Keren Lotan; Treasurer, Sarah Pozos; Primary Coordinator, Leah Hedge; Secondary Coordinator, Ramie Ahlstromramie

Instagram: @MOMSClubBlufftonHHI

Facebook: MOMS Club of Bluffton and Hilton Head

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: MOMSClubInternational.org