Sistering CU T-Shirt Fundraiser

Lynn* had just recently arrived in the United States with her American husband. She grew up in another country and didn't know many people here. Within a few short months, Lynn had their baby. Afterward, she felt increasingly lonely and isolated. Recognizing her growing struggle, her midwife reached out to Sistering CU. Lynn, understandably, needed someone in addition to her husband to witness her transition to motherhood and share the experience with. We sent her our first volunteer. For three months, they met every week for two hours. And the new mom began to share her story about her native country, her family, and her baby. She began to laugh again. She said she felt more relaxed and happy after the visits. She’s found ways to get out into the community and form new relationships. Lynn feels more like herself, a new self.

This support and connection is why we are here. It makes us better.
*Lynn is a pseudonym

Backstory: In the fall of 2015 almost simultaneously, but still independently, co-founders Dorie Geissler and Erin Murphy contacted a mutual friend and doula with their concerns about the lack of postpartum care for new moms and shared ideas as to how to address the issues. Once the mutual friend put them in touch with one another, they formed bonds of friendship began collaborate quickly. Over the course of 2015, Geissler and Murphy researched postpartum care as well as similarly established organizations across the United States, most of which generously offered resources and advice. They networked with and learned from local nonprofits, doulas, researchers, and boosters as well. Finally, after almost a year of planning and organizing, they registered Sistering CU as a nonprofit and have begun fundraising and recruiting volunteers to serve the local Champaign County community.

Our name, Sistering CU is inspired by Glennon Doyle's (momastery.com) metaphorical use of the carpentry term, sistering. Sometimes an existing joist, which was designed to handle a certain load, becomes too weak. When a builder needs to strengthen that joist, she puts a new member on either side of the the original one and fastens them together. The new - stronger joist - is called a Sister Joist. Like sister joists in carpentry strengthen weakened structures, we want to be there to provide extra structural support for families in the first few months after birth.