Hi! My name is Jessica Patay and I am a delinquent, infrequent blogger.
In fact, I almost took it down from my Instagram profile because if I don’t blog for over a year (or more!) do I still have the audacity to call myself a Blogger?
After NOT posting for 20 months, I sat down to write my thoughts on this quarantine and the massive impact on special needs families. (And, of course, there are thousands of other heartbreaking repercussions of the coronavirus and the subsequent Shelter In Place orders.) I felt compelled and called to share the truth.
If you read that blog post, I deeply thank you.
To catch you up…if this blog post still goes out to all subscribers that is…I have been a little happy-busy with a nonprofit organization I launched in July of 2017. We Are Brave Together supports mothers with children, any age, with any disability, diagnosis or challenge. AND, even if your child has special health care needs but NO diagnosis, you are still welcome to be a part of this community. My mission is to fight compassion fatigue (caregiver burnout) and isolation that mothers face, by offering support groups, workshops, low-cost retreats, and inspirational events. We have an online private Facebook Group as well, where moms can seek resources, ask questions, share victories, humor and hope.
I believe strongly in the power of gathering. Which right now, during the COVID-19 season, we are not able to. But when this lockdown lifts, watch out!
I love this quote by Alice Waters:
“This is the power of gathering; it inspires us delightfully, to be more hopeful, more joyful, more thoughtful: In a word, more alive.”
I have never been an Executive Director before. My team and I jumped out of the nest and built our wings on the way down. We had to start, BECAUSE THE NEED IS SO GREAT, even without a website or nonprofit status. We had a list of names, mothers who were interested in what we were planning, on an Excel spreadsheet. Yes. Bare bones beginning and then it all came together!! We have had our NPO status for 2 years now! I wear many hats and I love them all! Ok, not the accounting/numbers part, to be honest. Thankfully we have a wonderful Treasurer, bookkeeper and CPA on our team. Phew! We began with about 125 moms on that fancy spreadsheet and now we have 940 in our website database! Membership is nationwide but we have 80% of our members in Southern California, where we are based.
It is a PRIVILEGE to be in these moms’ lives! I have never met so many loving, compassionate, brave-hearts, who are also, exhausted and working so hard for their families. We are all on a spectrum of overwhelm, meltdown or burnout. Which is why we need breaks, we need to share and vent and learn from each other, and draw strength and education from each other. “Girlfriends who get you are sacred and mandatory, “ I like to say. In WABT, we “get” each other, even if our backgrounds and children are very diverse. It is comforting to be around other mothers who understand what Special Needs Motherhood is all about: doctors, therapists, endless appointments, meetings, IEPs, navigating the Regional Center and school district, special needs trusts, all while trying to keep a household afloat, a marriage afloat, work afloat, and giving love and attention to the neuro-typical siblings.
An exciting development that this forced lockdown/slowdown afforded us is the launch of a PODCAST for We Are Brave Together. A dream come true! At the time of this writing, we have recorded 7 episodes and record our 8th this weekend. We launch May 17th!! It is titled “Brave Together with Jessica Patay” and will be available soon on many podcast platforms. One day it would be great to have a co-host to share this passion project with, too. NOT to get fame and fortune, ha, just truly as a tool of HOPE and help for life in the trenches of motherhood.
It is yet another way we plan to bring inspiration and resources to moms EVERYWHERE!! Our hope, as in all we do in WABT, is that moms will feel less alone, and feel extremely empowered and supported. Stay tuned!
Although I have not been writing my “blog posts,” I have been writing a lot for social media, newsletters and talks that I give from time to time. I am always open and observing and thinking about writing different pieces for this space. And yet, my time has been happily full of We Are Brave Together. As much as I can during this unusual season, I will write and share my truth, my heart, my life, honestly, and gratefully. Thanks for being here along the way.
AlwAys thoughtful and compassionately written. 💜