Teaming up to celebrate Mother's Day

In honor of Mother’s Day, we're partnering with local businesses to celebrate moms-to-be. Throughout this week, we delivered care packages – with donated flowers, baby books, letters from community members, and more – to patients at five Cincinnati Health Department prenatal clinics. This is an extension of our Letters of Love initiative, in which community members write letters of support to pregnant women.Why? In Hamilton County, many infants who die are born to moms who report that they don’t have the social or emotional support that they need. When compared to state and national rates, Cincinnati moms also report having higher stress levels and less support to deal with that stress.“We know that women who feel a strong sense of support from their community have healthier pregnancies,” said City Councilmember and Cradle Cincinnati Co-Chair Wendell Young. “Mother’s Day is the perfect opportunity to remind pregnant women that the Cincinnati community is here for them. I encourage all Cincinnatians to reach out to pregnant women that they know and ask how they can be of help.”“Good health isn’t all about physical health; it also includes emotional well-being and mental health. Too often, the important role of stress is overlooked in pregnancy,” said Hamilton County Commissioner and Cradle Cincinnati Co-Chair Todd Portune. “It is our hope that this program can play a small part in helping women feel the support of their neighbors.”A big thank you to Half Price Books in Kenwood and Hamilton, Trader Joe’s, Buckeye Health Plan, Paramount Health Care, and Molina Healthcare of Ohio, who each provided donated items for the care packages.Additionally, two moms were nominated by local nurses to receive special gifts from Findlay Market and The Woodhouse Day Spa in Montgomery.If you want to support local moms, too, we encourage you to write a Letter of Love. We'll hand deliver your letter to a woman during her prenatal doctor appointment. You can submit your letter to lettersoflove@cradlecincinnati.org.