Unbound: Empowering Women Across the Globe

As an American woman, I have had opportunities that many women around the world will never have. These opportunities have included receiving an education from an early age and the freedom to choose between a full-time career, staying at home, or a combination of both. In addition to intellectual opportunities, I have an advantage over many other women in that I have running water, access to medicine, and a skilled pediatrician. As a mom these are things that I can take for granted, but I realize that they all contribute to creating an environment in which I am empowered to care for my family and help my children be successful. On my recent trip to Merida, Mexico with Unbound, I discovered an organization at work empowering women in incredible and life-changing ways.

When you sponsor a child with Unbound, something very important happens. Aside from the obvious and primary mission of helping the child, something happens to the child’s mother upon sponsorship. When a child is sponsored, the child’s mother becomes part of the local mother’s group, a close-knit family of women working together toward self-reliance. The groups are vital because, as Unbound explains “Through these small groups, together, mothers define their families’ greatest needs, such as seed money for a small business, educational support or community activism. They organize to meet those needs with guidance and support from our projects.”

I met dozens of mothers in the Merida area who were part of a mother’s group. They meet a few times a month to learn marketable skills, homemaking skills, life skills, handicrafts, and family-oriented topics such as time management and parenting. Most of the women I met were what Unbound calls Contact Moms. These moms are leaders in their groups and are responsible for overseeing the group and encouraging the other moms. These amazing women inspired me with their dedication, intelligence, and drive to lift themselves and others out of the bonds of poverty and isolation. Here I am with Paolina and Veronica, two incredible Contact Moms.

If you consider yourself a women’s advocate, I encourage you to visit Unbound and sponsor a child today. It is so affordable and rewarding. You can make a difference for just $36 a month.

If you do not think you can afford a sponsorship, check out these creative ways you can afford to sponsor a child.