<article><h1>Celebrating Moms</h1><p><br>Today and every day we’re honored to celebrate our refugee and immigrant mothers - <strong style="color:#6ec829;">some of the most resilient people on earth</strong> - along with all mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and women who serve as loving guardians, fierce advocates, and forever champions for their children and those they love.</p><p>There to cheer us on as we chase our dreams, dust us off when we fall, and teach us how to be a loving force for good in this world - <strong style="color:#ff6c36;">these women deserve every bit of celebration we can give</strong>.</p><p>This Mother’s Day, give the mothers and special women in your life the gift that keeps on giving. When you purchase one of our Mother’s Day gift sets below not only will we send a special gift to the mom of your choice, but <strong style="color:#57c9e8;">all proceeds will support new and expecting refugee and immigrant mothers in Pittsburgh</strong>.</p><p>Every gift set purchased provides funding for meal train deliveries and essential supplies for new and expecting refugee and immigrant mothers.</p><h2>Mother&#8217;s Day Gift Sets</h2><p>When you donate at a certain level you are eligible for one of our gift set options below. Please note that you can also choose to make a donation at any level and bypass the gift if that is your preference. Donations or purchases of any amount with go toward supporting refugee and immigrant mothers in Pittsbugh.</p><p><em><strong>Note</strong>: With a donations of any amount you have the opportunity to send your mom a custom Mother&#8217;s Day e-card - just mark &#8220;Dedicate This Donation&#8221; at check out and enter your message and recipient info!</em></p><div class="row top-padding-medium"> <div class="col-xxs-12 col-xs-5 team-photo"> <a href="#XUGVNJMF" style="display: none"></a> </div> <div class="col-xxs-12 col-xs-6 float-right"> <h2>Gift Set #1: Gratitude & Relaxation Kit</h2> <p>When you donate <strong style="color:#ff6c36;">$35 or more</strong> we will send you or your mom the following:</p> <ul> <li>$5 Virtual Yoga Class Pass from <a href="https://www.yogamotif.com/">YOGAMOTIF</a></li> <li>Glow Body Butter from <a href="https://bombashearley.com/products/glow-shimmer-whipped-body-butter">Bombash & Earley</a></li> <li>Mother&#8217;s Day card with stories of the refugee and immigrant mothers this gift helps support.</li></ul> </div></div><div class="row top-padding-medium"> <div class="col-xxs-12 col-xs-5 team-photo"> <a href="#XJKXCBYS" style="display: none"></a> </div> <div class="col-xxs-12 col-xs-6 float-right"> <h2>Gift Set #2: Self-Love Gift Box</h2> <p>When you donate <strong style="color:#ff6c36;">$75 or more</strong> we will send you or your mom our Self-Love Gift Box which features products from local Pittsburgh businesses including:</p><ul> <li>$5 Virtual Yoga Class Pass from <a href="https://www.yogamotif.com/">YOGAMOTIF</a></li> <li>Glow Body Butter from <a href="https://bombashearley.com/products/glow-shimmer-whipped-body-butter">Bombash & Earley</a></li> <li>Vegan (GF) Brownies from <a href="https://www.wildrisebakery.com/">Wild Rise Bakery</a></li> <li>Loose Leaf Tea from <a href="https://www.gryphonstea.com/">Gryphon’s Tea</a></li> <li> Coffee/Tea Tumbler (built-in infuser)</li></ul> </div></div><p><em>Each gift set includes a special Mother&#8217;s Day card with stories of the refugee and immigrant mothers your gift helps support.</em></p><h3>Order Details:</h3><ul><li><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">Local:</strong> Local delivery will be prioritized for orders made within a 25-mile radius of Hello Neighbor&#8217;s office in Larimer, PA. Order <strong>before May 6th</strong> to guarantee delivery on or before Mother’s Day.</li><li><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Non-Local:</strong> Order <strong>before May 5th</strong> to guarantee delivery on or before Mother’s Day.</li></ul><p><em><strong>NOTE:</strong> E-Cards will be delivered instantly upon donation; If you have special delivery instructions please note at check-out</em></p><hr><h2>Imagine This&#8230;</h2><p>You arrive in a new country, thousands of miles from the familiarities of home or the comforts of your support system of family and friends. You work to rebuild your life and begin again. You are pregnant and excited to grow your family yet uncertain about navigating childbirth in a place where hospital systems, language access, and community support are unfamiliar and sometimes unavailable.</p><p>Our <a href="https://www.helloneighbor.io/advocate-program">Smart Start Program</a> works to provide culturally competent and personalized support for new refugee and immigrant moms and their babies by pairing them with local moms to guide and support them through pregnancy and postpartum. Any donation you make today will go toward supporting new and expecting refugee and immigrant mothers here in Pittsburgh through our Smart Start program.</p><p>Read stories about some of the mothers in our Smart Start program below and hear what motherhood, and the support of other women, means to them.</p><hr><p><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/634ae6816088707d372246f0/6379315596fd6b13ea786bbe_foziya-story-photo.png" alt=“foziya”></p><p>Foziya joined Hello Neighbor’s Smart Start program in December of 2020 and was soon matched with local mother and Smart Start volunteer, Sara.</p><p>Originally from Ethiopia, Foziya and her husband resettled in Pittsburgh in 2018 and raised two beautiful children (ages six and one) and welcomed two twin girls this month.</p><p>During her pregnancy, Sara was able to support Foziya over the phone, checking in to make sure she felt heard every time she went to the doctors office and that she had all the supplies she needed to welcome two new babies into the family. While their communication still takes place primarily over the phone due to COVID, both women look forward to the day when they can spend time together in person.</p><p>We asked Foziya a few questions about her experience as a mother and what it means to her to have the support of other women through Hello Neighbor. Read her Q&amp;A below:</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What is your favorite thing about being a mother?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> Everything about it is fabulous. I love being a mother. I love seeing my kids eat - whether it is with a bottle or breastfeeding - I am happy when they eat. I love it.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What does it mean to have the support of other women?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> It is a great feeling. [My match Sara] is a great person. It’s a great fit… she constantly calls me and checks up on me. Even before I gave birth she was asking me about my experience seeing the doctor and helping me. Also she always asks me if I need anything - clothes for my kids, diapers, car seats - all of those things. I am grateful that I found people like her.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What do you hope for the future of your children?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> The most important thing for me is for them to get a good education and do well in their school. I would like them to accomplish great things. I also want them to follow their dreams and choose their own future and I want to be able to do everything for them to support them in that.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> How has your experience been with Hello Neighbor Smart Start Program?</strong><br> <strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A: </strong>I cannot say enough how grateful I am. Hello Neighbor has been extremely helpful and extremely nice - from helping me write down ideas for the doctors to being there for support - it has been absolutely fabulous. They are very very good - I do not have enough words to express. I want to thank everyone for everything.<br></p><hr><p><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/634ae6816088707d372246f0/637931df8d9dda57f0d2f59b_parinam-story.png" alt=“parinam”></p><p>Parinam was born and raised in Afghanistan. Due to civil unrest, she and her husband were forced from their home and resettled in Pittsburgh in 2019.</p><p>As the sole income provider, Parinam’s husband works during the day and she stays home with her five children, ranginging in age from 19 to her newborn daughter Padra, born in April 2021.</p><p>Parinam joined Hello Neighbor’s Smart Start program in January 2021 and was matched with her mentor Marcela, who also happened to be the Mom-To-Mom Support Coordinator at Hello Neighbor.</p><p>We asked Parinam about her experience as a mother and what it means to her to have the support of other women through Hello Neighbor. Read her Q&amp;A below:</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What is your favorite thing about being a mother?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> Being a mother feels great and amazing. All that time you wait for your child to be born and then after they are born when you embrace them for the first time you feel like it was worth it all to have them come into this world.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What does it mean to have the support of other women?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> With the civil war going on in Afghanistan, it was very hard to raise children there. It was a very difficult thing to do. But here I am getting support from amazing women through Hello Neighbor like my match Marcela. I feel very strongly supported and thankful to God that I have this kind of support in my life.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> What do you hope for the future of your children?</strong><br><strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A:</strong> It is challenging to provide for such a big family like ours. My husband is the sole provider for our family of seven. I hope that my children will grow up to become very hard working and have an amazing future ahead of them. I can see that one day in this country they will become someone not only for themselves but someone for society and their family. I am very sure they will become someone really special in the future.</p><p><strong style="color:#ff6c36;">Q:</strong><strong> How has your experience been with Hello Neighbor Smart Start Program?</strong><br> <strong style="color:#57c9e8;">A: </strong>I feel very amazed and happy about the support I received here from Marcela and Hello Neighbor. The way they supported me and my children through my pregnancy - I will never forget that kindness.</p><p>Marcela was there through all the good and bad times with me. She was a really good provider. Her kind heart and all the ways she supported me through what I was going through - my words cannot express how wonderful she is.</p><p>There is a saying in Afghanistan: Happiness comes from the source of kindness. Marcela is one of the greatest sources of kindness I have seen.</p><p><br></p><p><a href="#XMFDUPYY" style="display: none"></a></p><hr><h2>Thank You To Our Amazing Partners</h2><p><em>We&#8217;re honored to partner with this amazing local small businesses in supporting our refugee and immigrant neighbors.</em><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/634ae6816088707d372246f0/637931e2fdb2f7828bb40250_mothers-day-partners.png" alt=“mothers day partners”></p></article>