Helping hand for those in need on Mothers’ Day

Mothers’ Day is a time for celebration, and to  support vulnerable mums doing it tough in Moreton Bay and beyond.

Melissa Redsell OAM, founder of the Brendale-based charity A Brave Life, says practical help and “small gestures” can help on this special day.

She speaks from experience having been pregnant at 16, then qualified as a nurse and midwife before founding the charity to help mothers in need.

A Brave Life works to “connect and equip vulnerable mothers to necessary resources and support so they feel encouraged, empowered, and confident caring for newborns”.

“This Mothers’ Day I think we need to be mindful there are people feeling isolated or don’t have that family support around them,” Melissa said.

“Smiling at person you pass or saying hello to people … those small gestures can go a long way around Mothers Day.”

A Brave Life currently has a baby bundle drive at Westfield North Lakes taking donations of newborn baby items which are then passed on to Moreton Bay mothers in need.

“A lot of mums might be turning up at hospital this Mother’s Day without those essentials,” Melissa said, “if we can support them in a practical way that’s amazing."

Sponsorships are also welcomed for baby bundles or a place for a mum on the charity’s Empowering Mums and Little Ones (EMALO) program.

The latter ensures a mum in Moreton Bay has a “safe space to come with their children”, said Melissa, the 2023 Queenslander of the Year - Local Hero.

With one-in-six children and one-in-seven females living in poverty, Melissa says “it could be affecting someone you know”.

“We’ve seen a massive increase in need for our services in the last four or five months which reflects the living crisis, the struggle to find housing and put food on the table,” she said.

“If we can help through things like our baby bundle program that leaves mums able to focus on paying rent and putting food on the table.

“It helps take away a little bit of the stress for mums who are vulnerable and doing it tough.”

The drive to help goes back more than a decade. Melissa decided, when her daughter was 10 months old, she wanted to “do something” to benefit them both.

With one-year-old Breanna in tow, Melissa enrolled to study nursing and then midwifery, but there was still an urge to use her story to help other teenage mums.

Working in a Moreton Bay hospital inspired the birth of A Brave Life in 2015, using donations, grants and sponsorship to provide new nappy bags for expectant teen mums.