Mother's Day Brunch aims to bring healing to those grieving a loss
Special Mother's Day brunch
In the next few weeks, people everywhere will honor the women in their lives for Mother’s Day. Instead of celebrating, many people will spend that day grieving the loss of their mothers. There’s an event designed to turn that heartache into hope. Here with details on that special Mother's Day brunch is Dr. Sonya Strider.
ATLANTA - For many, Mother’s Day is a time to celebrate the women who raised them. But for others, it’s a painful reminder of loss.
A special event in Decatur hopes to offer healing and support for those grieving the absence of their mothers.
The backstory:
The fourth annual "Beyond the Sunshine" Mother's Day Brunch, organized by Dr. Sonya Strider, will take place next Saturday at Green Forest Community Baptist Church from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
What they're saying:
Dr. Strider, who lost her own mother in 2015, said she was driven to create the event after realizing the weight of facing Mother’s Day without her.
"I thought if I'm struggling, then there are other women who are struggling as well," Strider said. "They always talk about turning your pain into a purpose, so from that, I decided that I wanted to do a brunch to just bring women together to kind of prepare them for Mother's Day."
The brunch is intentionally held before Mother’s Day, offering participants a space to express their emotions without judgment.
"You can go out and see yourself. You can share your story. You can cry if you need to. You can bawl if you need to because somebody is going to be there to help you, pick you up, and hug you," Strider said.
Each year, the event features a speaker delivering a motivational message centered on healing.
"It's usually motivational, right? You know, how do you keep going? What can you do to turn this heart into a purpose or what can you just do? How do you heal your heart?" Strider explained. "At the tables, women share stories. Some have been coming since the first year and have created bonds, exchanging numbers and building a sisterhood."
Participants are encouraged to reach out to others who understand their pain.
"When it's feeling heavy for you, you have somebody you can call. And maybe they'll say, 'Come, let's go to coffee,' or whatever," Strider said.
Coping with grief around holidays like Mother's Day can be especially difficult, Strider noted.
"When you go in the store, there's all the Mother's Day cards and the Mother's Day gifts and all the Mother's Day commercials and the radio ads and everybody talking about what they’re doing for their mothers," she said. "The best coping skill is, if you need to, kind of take some time back. It's OK to tell people 'I'm not OK.' It's OK to say, 'Today I think I'm just going to do something unconventional, nontraditional. Maybe I'll just go to the movie or maybe I'll go to the beach.'"
Strider added that it can also be an opportunity to honor other influential women.
"It's an opportunity to still celebrate the special women in your life," she said. "Teachers, coaches, grandmothers, aunts — even those who aren't mothers but have played a motherly role."
The event theme is symbolized by the color yellow, which was her mother’s favorite and a symbol of hope.
"Yellow was one of my mom's favorite colors, but yellow is also the color of hope," Strider said. "That's why at our brunch, we wear yellow. It's the hope for the healing."
What you can do:
Tickets for the brunch are still available and can be found here.
The Source: Dr. Sonya Strider spoke with FOX 5's Kaitlyn Pratt on Good Day Atlanta.