IN THE NEWS

We were thrilled when Bob Eckstein included a chapter about the Museum of Motherhood in his book ‘Footnotes From The Most Fascinating Museums’. In fact, the book is featured on our large wall mural in the new location in Gallery Row at The Factory. But, imagine our surprise when Bob sent us a copy of this recent Reader’s Digest article that boldly mentioned MoM among other fascinating favorites in the USA. Check it out here. Reader’s Digest article with picture and mention of MoM.

ESCAPE WOMB IS OPEN

Our ticketing site for MoM’s Escape Womb Experience is live. The experience is designed to delight visitors with clues and puzzles about the nuances of conception, gestation and birth in a fun and informative environment. This health, wellness and education adventure is a-first-of-its-kind in the world. Open to people age 18 and above (younger with an accompanying parent or guardian) by advance reservation. Tickets can be through our website for up to six people at a time. Or come alone and we’ll place you with a team: https://escapewomb.resova.us/

DON’T FORGET – SUBMIT TO THE MoM CONFERENCE TODAY

Don’t forget! This year is the 20th Anniversary of the Annual Academic & Arts MoM Conference. This year’s theme titled ‘FUN, SEX and CRYING OUT LOUD’ brings levity and depth to the art, research, and auto-ethnographic works related to m/otherhood inclusive of all reproductive identities. This year’s conference is in partnership with USF. Submissions are due by Dec. 15th please. See the full international call for papers! Join Us.

MEET OUR TEAM

Meet our new volunteer! Valentina Blanco is eager to help with the beautiful projects of this organization as she has advocated for women’s rights since she was just a girl. She loves to educate others through art, connection, and community. She looks forwards to working with MoM & Joy at the new museum location at The Factory in Gallery Row. She also anticipates organizing some graphics and social media projects, assisting with MoM’s Escape Womb and whatever else needs to be done during her time each week. See more about Service Learning, volunteer and internship opportunities here.

A MESSAGE ABOUT THE FOUNDER

Pray & Stay as founder Martha Joy Rose undergoes surgery on December 12th at Tampa General after a challenging year of wellness struggles. Rose has been experiencing the long-term side effects of cytoxan chemotherapy, administered thirty years ago for Lupus. The resulting diagnosis of bladder cancer has consolidated the MoM Team into a skilled group of allies who have been managing the day-to-day administration of museum activities since the summer. Rose anticipates returning to management responsibilities in January, but recovery is bound to be cautious and gradual. Please support us during this difficult time.

May is coming and May is Mothers’ Month. What do we make of this month of observances at the Museum of Motherhood? Years ago, just over one-hundred years, Mother’s Day was voted into legislation as a national day of observance. On May 8, 1914, the U.S. Congress designated the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day requesting a proclamation which Woodrow Wilson signed into law.

We are grateful to Bob Eckstein for the release of his most recent book Footnotes from the Most Fascinating Museums, available to order online, which includes a shout out to the Museum of Motherhood. What an awesome surprise! Thank you, Bob.

The very first American celebration of Mother’s Day was in Grafton West Virginia, organized by Anna Jarvis who wanted a day for families to commemorate their loved ones. Previous versions of a motherhood movement prioritized social involvement for mothers for the betterment of society including peace initiatives like the one that Julia Ward Howe is famous for. In that context, the reading becomes Mothers’ Day (notice the apostrophe) (Read more here).

As the founder of the Museum of Motherhood, I was fortunate to celebrate the one hundred year anniversary of Mother’s Day with my own mother, as the featured speaker at the historic landmark St Andrews Methodist Church, which is the International Mother’s Day Shrine in Grafton West Virginia. My keynote talk addressed the importance of place, one of the core components of the commitment I feel towards the Museum of Motherhood. Humans need physical places to acknowledge our embodied experiences and to activate memory and cultural identities.

I purposely chose to embrace motherhood as a socially engaged activity involving not just families but the well-being of communities, hence my efforts on behalf of women, mothers and families (inclusive of all reproductive identities) through the years. As a young mom living in New York City, I learned how important friendship and collaboration are. The parks and playgrounds became my home away from home with four children in tow. Those friendships became the bedrock of my life as a mother. These gals were the people I turned to for support, compassion, understanding, and FUN! Since moving to Florida with my now adult children, I still look to my community of women for a shared sense of passion, camaraderie, and the mission of the MoM.

This year, for the first time in many, I said ‘yes’ to Liz Dimmitt at The Fairgrounds St Pete when she suggested we bring a MaMaPaLooZa Festival to Tampa Bay. The festival initiatives, begun in 2002, have worked alongside the Museum of Motherhood to generate more visibility regarding the labor, art, and enterprise of women. This year, marks the first time in over ten years, where I personally agreed to an event outside of MoM. So, in addition to our May fundraising activities at the museum to build a ‘Womb of Our Own‘, the MaMaPaLooZa Festival will take place on May 4th in partnership with The Fairgrounds St Pete at The Factory in Tampa Bay. Hope to see you there or at one of these other opportunities we will be creating this month! ~Martha Joy Rose, Director and Founder; MoM, MaMaPaLooZa

The Journal of Mother Studies: a peer-reviewed, international, interdisciplinary open-access, digital humanities hybrid project.

CFP 2024: Threads of Connection–Sorry/Not Sorry: Confronting mother (and other) blame–healing & resistance in contemporary culture and beyond. Submissions to the Journal are open until May 31st [Link to Submit]. Also seeking lead editor for the 2024 edition. MORE INFO.

The Saint Petersburg Month of Photography in collaboration with the Museum of Motherhood presents the exhibition MOTHER LENS: Four Visions of Motherhood: Mikaela Martin, Jena Love, Águeda Sanfiz, and Angelika Kollin, present their reflections on motherhood with very distinctive voices that range from the visual personal journal, the photojournalistic essay, conceptual photography, and fine art portraiture. [More]

Description: Join us for a day of celebration and empowerment at MAMAPALOOZA St. Petersburg 2024! Hosted at The Factory by MoM and Fairgrounds St. Pete, this event honors and uplifts mothers and caregivers in our community through a dynamic mix of music, art, and camaraderie.

Special thanks to our sponsors: St. Anthony’s BayCare, Great Explorations Children’s Museum, The Barn UPT, and Stephanie Allen Coaching. MAMAPALOOZA St. Petersburg 2024 offers a diverse lineup of activities and entertainment for attendees of all ages. [LINK]

CALL TO ACTION: Join Our Founders Circle- Building MoM in Florida. Calling one hundred friends to invest in the future of Tampa Bay by helping us grow locally. Also, a Womb of Our Own Sculpture – Seeing Red coming this month.

MoM invites you to become join our Founders Circle by making a donation of $1,000 to fund our 2024-25 budget at The Factory in St. Pete. Donate and then help us celebrate the Museum of Motherhood in St. Pete. We invite YOU to join us as we bring this legacy project to its next phase of development. May 8th 6-7:30PM – Please PLEDGE by May 1st using our form here