When is Mother’s Day? Every day.

Mother’s Day is celebrated this year on Sunday, May 11. It is a holiday set aside to honor our mothers and significant maternal figures and express gratitude for the person who, for many, defines unconditional love.  

In actuality, Mother’s Day is every day. Whether it’s holding a family together during times of crisis or providing love and support, mothers play an essential role in our lives.  

Even with the best resources, motherhood is hard. But for our neighbors experiencing the darkest and direst times of life, it is extremely and brutally so.  

For Nyakuaw in South Sudan, Mother’s Day was the day she fled armed rebels, and the only home she’d ever known, with her four small children, uncertain of the future ahead. As a widow — like many others in her country, her husband had been killed in the civil war — she faces discrimination, leaving her with little decision-making power or support to determine her future.  

With the compassion of friends like you, mothers like Nyakuaw who have fled violence are being welcomed with safe refuge and dependable ways to provide for their families. 

For Shila in Nepal, Mother's Day was the day she experienced pain and heartache like never before. Like many rural communities in her country, health care is extremely limited, especially when it comes to accessing prenatal care or delivery assistance. At five months pregnant, Shila started having complications. But it was flooding season, making travel impossible, and she was forced to seek inadequate care close to home. Without the help she needed, her womb ruptured, and she lost her baby. Today, she continues to suffer long-term health complications. She has undergone numerous surgeries and needs more but doesn’t have the financial means to cover them. 

Because of the kindness of others, mothers like Shila have better health care access and no longer suffer unnecessarily.  

For Irma in Guatemala, Mother’s Day was the day she could no longer produce milk for her new baby, due to years of poor nutrition. It's not surprising, considering where she lives, 80% of the population live in poverty and two-thirds of young children have anemia. Contaminated water and poor hygiene cause stomach illnesses, and challenging farming practices result in little nutritious food and low income. And now the struggle to thrive is being passed on to her children, who can't reach their full potential.  

Because of loyal supporters like you, mothers like Irma are growing dependable and nutritious crops to feed themselves and their children and have access to clean water supplies so that families can thrive. 

For Çağla in Türkiye, Mother’s Day was the day her husband died in the earthquake, leaving her to care for her four children alone. In addition to her husband, her mother, pregnant sister and brother-in-law were killed. Like many mothers who survive the horrific nightmare of disaster, Çağla finds herself paralyzed by grief, but forced to continue, for the sake of her children.  

Because of generous neighbors like you, mothers like Çağla are being comforted in their grief, with the loving handiwork of your quilts and kits and the stability of longer-term housing. 

For Aisata in Mali, Mother’s Day is each day she chooses to feed her children instead of herself. After witnessing the atrocious death of her son by insurgents, Aisata and her children fled her town to an informal camp far from home. Without a regular food source, she is forced to rely on donations from neighbors and often makes the unfathomable decision of which child to feed that day.  

Because of your faithful heart, mothers like Aisata no longer must make impossible decisions, having received nourishing food and the tools necessary to rebuild a sustainable life, despite the challenges life throws at them.  

Motherhood is holy. 

Motherhood is dangerous.  

Motherhood is heartbreaking.