08 Jan MAMAS for Mamas
The holiday season is over, the new year is underway, and the temperatures are beginning to drop. This time of year can be tough. It’s cold and lonely and the winter months seem to drag on for forever. But the new year is also an opportunity to have a better year — to be a better you. 2016 has the potential to be the best and most exciting, life-changing year yet. Sojourner wants it to be, and we want to help. With one new program already launched, we are actively working toward making 2016 a great year for the Butler County region.
A few weeks ago, community leaders gathered in Hamilton to announce the new Butler County Motherhood and Maternity Addiction Services (MAMAS) program. MAMAS was created to serve pregnant women who are suffering from addiction and their families. The development of MAMAS was a joint venture by several Butler County entities, including, but not limited to, County Commissioner Cindy Carpenter, Butler County Mental Health and Addiction Recovery Services Board (BCMHARS), Butler County Department of Job and Family Services, Supports to Encourage Low Income Families (SELF), Ohio Means Jobs (OMJ), and Sojourner Recovery Services. The unprecedented collaboration of these organizations allows MAMAS to fill traditional holes in services — such as education, employment, childcare, and housing — to be a truly comprehensive program.
Typically, women in the MAMAS program will begin treatment in a Sojourner residential program to treat their addiction. After they successfully leave our residential program, they and their children will have the option to move into a transitional housing unit, at no charge to them — thanks to a partnership between Sojourner and Butler County. Throughout this entire process, the women will have the opportunity to work or earn an education. Furthermore, each woman will be assigned a case manager to help them navigate and utilize the resources available to them. The aim of MAMAS is to give women the skills and resources they need in order to be wonderful mamas.
With the MAMAS program already launched, Sojourner would like to say 2016 is off to a pretty good start! However, we are not satisfied. We plan to devote the rest of 2016 to saving lives, fostering hope, and strengthening the communities of the Butler County region.