Mother’s Day, A Special Holiday

Mother’s Day is a special holiday for all of us at Family Values @ Work. Though we celebrate mothers all year long, we love having an opportunity to highlight them at this time of year. Working mothers make up most of our staff (myself included) and a large share of our activists, followers, and donors. Our efforts to win Earned Sick and Safe Days (ESSD) or Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FMLI) are primed to support working mothers, who experience the greatest hardships when these policies are absent.

For this Mother’s Day, we’re starting our yearly celebration of moms early. UncommonGoods is helping us by offering two giveaways to our followers and friends. Starting today, April 9, you can enter to win one of two packages – the “Smooth Start” New Parent Giveaway Package or the “The Boss” Working Mom Giveaway Package.

“The Boss” Working Mom Giveaway Package

I’m especially excited about these giveaways because they contain some of my favorite items from UncommonGoods. The Boss Tote Diaper Bag has an elegant design and it’s made with vegan leather. Our staff can’t enter this giveaway, of course, but if I could, I’d want that tote! Bonus – for every tote sold, the designer donates a meal to a hungry child in the US. So, I’ll have to save up to buy it instead.

I also love the New Parents Supply Kit, handcrafted by Marit Aagard and Jeff Lovett in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I can remember those early days of new parenthood, not too long ago. My son was born in 2016. The best baby shower gift I received was a “care package” like this supply kit. Full of items to promote self-care, it also came with the subtle message not to forget to take care of myself while caring for a newborn.

“Smooth Start” New Parent Giveaway Package

I’m proud that we’re launching this giveaway with UncommonGoods because I know the winners will get quality, handcrafted items. Many of them are exclusive to UncommonGoods, and they meet the company’s very high standards for social and environmental sustainability. Most of the small to medium-sized companies that create the items in our giveaway packages have committed to paying above a living wage. That’s important to our organization because of our work through the Labor Project, which coordinates engagement by the labor movement in our ESSD and FMLI campaigns. The Labor Project ensures that our network across the country shows up in the fight for fair working conditions and economic justice – like instituting a living wage and increasing the minimum wage.

Of course, the highlight for each package is the Work/Life Balance Keychain, which we launched last year with UncommonGoods. For each purchase of the keychain, UncommonGoods has sent Family Values @ Work a $1 donation – and those funds have really made a difference for our organization. Almost every dollar we bring in goes back out to the field to support our campaigns in the states. That’s why we’re winning! We support the organizing and activist work on the ground in 27 states, building towards the passage of national policies on ESSD and FMLI.

Join us in our work. Enter to win one of our giveaway packages today! Share the contest with new parents and moms everywhere, and help us celebrate mothers across the U.S. all year long.

By Rachel Mannino, staff at Family Values @ Work.