When Toi Nichols was preparing for her first child in 2018, she envisioned walking around with her newborn baby, rocking him to sleep and bonding with him constantly.
A nerve injury that she suffered while delivering her baby left her unable to walk for several weeks, changed the way she experienced motherhood and ultimately, resulted in the start of her nonprofit, M.O.R.E Mothers.
Nichols’ Long Beach-based organization prioritizes the mother’s health rather than the baby’s, because “a healthy mom is a healthy baby,” she explained. Her experience being injured inspired her to create a network of support for new mothers and women of color, ranging from delivery services, support groups and a rotating schedule of educational programs.
“Yes, we’re worried and want to take care of the baby too, but we really focus on the mom, because this M.O.R.E Mothers is me and what I needed at the time and I couldn’t find it exactly,” Nichols said.
She ended up losing her job as a result of the injury, and was left with mountains of paperwork to deal with as well as a newborn to care for. The time in her life in which she envisioned being filled with happiness ended up being “extremely lonely,” Nichols said.
“It’s just taking that kind of negative situation or traumatic situation that happened to me in the delivery room and just finding ways to … it was part of my healing. M.O.R.E Mothers really helped heal me emotionally and mentally, as well.”
—Toi Nichols, founder of M.O.R.E Mothers
She reached out to her cousin who gave her advice on applying for Medi-Cal benefits, and although she was weary of the stigma attached to using government benefits, she finally decided to apply.
“It really did kind of change my life and you know, it was just like that stepping stone I needed,” Nichols said. “So once I got my health benefits taken care of I was able to move forward, continue to get healthy and not worrying about like, ‘How am I gonna pay for this?’”
Once she was healthy and had her head above water, she was determined to make sure women in her same position would not have to deal with the stresses of applying for medical benefits and unemployment alone. She received a degree in marketing from Long Beach City College to begin the process of creating her nonprofit.
“The more comfortable I got talking about what I was going through or what I went through, I would run into women all the time saying, ‘Wow, I feel the same way’ or having the same experience,” Nichols said. “Once you start talking to people you notice that other people have been through the same thing.”
Nichols officially launched her nonprofit in 2020, starting off helping moms deal with the laborious process of applying for paid maternity leave, medical insurance or Women, Infants and Children (WIC) benefits. This was done either by going through paperwork with them and explaining the legal jargon, applying together or sometimes staying on hold with medical insurance companies for mothers.
As her organization began to spread through word of mouth, she would hear from women in need of items such as diapers and formula. The origins of M.O.R.E Mothers started with Nichols herself running to store and buying items for mothers and their children out of her own pocket.
“It’s just taking that kind of negative situation or traumatic situation that happened to me in the delivery room and just finding ways to … it was part of my healing. M.O.R.E Mothers really helped heal me emotionally and mentally, as well,” Nichols said.
After a few months of helping women of color in North, East and West Long Beach, the organization received its first sponsor, Baby to Baby, which donated larger items such as strollers and car seats. Since then, the program has worked with the City of Long Beach, Anthem Blue Cross, and the American Hearts Foundation, among others.
It has also allowed Nichols to expand and start a delivery service, Motherhood Together. The service currently serves over 120 women and children each month with free delivery of items such as diapers, wipes, baby clothing, formula, bottles and hygiene essentials.
Deliveries are done at least once a month on the third weekend, and extra deliveries are announced on their social media, @moremothers on Instagram. For regularly scheduled deliveries, an email blast goes out to all the people who were in need of items the last two months in order to check if they still require assistance.
Nichols explained that the women using the delivery service are made to feel special, whether through conversation or a nicely wrapped donation drop-off, in an attempt to create a community of mothers. Upon the third drop-off, usually Nichols will begin asking the mother what other areas she may need help in, whether emotionally, mentally, financially or physically.
“And sometimes it’s as small as, hey, you know, they’ve been talking to a two-year-old all day,” Nichols said. “When we’re doing this delivery, it’s a conversation or sometimes when they’re calling in for a resource, we end up just talking and that’s what they need.”
Once a relationship is established, many of the mothers are encouraged to attend a S.O.U.L. Circle, the program’s monthly support and group therapy sessions. The goal is to provide a place of “respect and understanding” for moms, according to their website.
Nichols explained that these monthly group sessions are not required to participate in the delivery service, but offer another way for a mother to receive help. Group sessions can range from a handful of women talking about whatever comes to their mind, to larger groups with a prompted discussion.
M.O.R.E Mothers also offers programs to women going over topics such as delivery service education, maternal education and infant CPR classes. These classes go over topics such as doulas, midwives, what to expect in the delivery room and how to advocate for yourself in medical situations.
Classes are often taught by women of color, in an attempt to allow the women participating to learn from “women that look like them,” she said. They are offered for free to mothers and priority is given to the more involved members.
As a member of the Black Health Equity Collaborative of Long Beach, Nichols is even more aware of the health disparities facing women of color. The coalition of 60 or so nonprofit organizations has helped to hone in on issues that mothers may face in the city, from checkups to the delivery room.
“When it comes down to our goal, we want women to feel confident in being able to advocate for themselves,” Nichols said. “When it comes to their health care, we want women to be confident in their preparedness.”
The organization has also connected with the greater community on multiple occasions in order to reach more people. They hosted a Christmas toy drive where they offered mothers up to three different kinds of toys for their children in order to “alleviate some of that stress” of Christmas shopping.
M.O.R.E Mothers is also participating in Long Beach Gives, an annual city-wide online event where donors and nonprofits collaborate to raise funds and awareness for the city’s resources.
To request a delivery, or to participate in one of the program’s workshops, visit the M.O.R.E Mothers website. To make a donation, reach out to contact@moremothers.org.
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