As a nurse-midwife working with breastfeeding mothers, I knew how difficult it was for a mother to get adequate rest, nutritious food, and plenty of clean water to produce enough milk for her baby. The mothers here often do not have access to bare necessities, no matter how hard they work for them. In the face of this scarcity, they give what they can, whatever they have, even if it will never be enough. For those most victimized physically and psychologically by wars, violence, and famines, what they have left to give can be very small indeed.

I appreciate now more than ever how self-sacrificing the women in Nzara are in caring for their children and providing for their families. Women would gather water from the wells in the village, hand wash clothes and soiled cloth diapers, breastfeed their infants, go to the market to buy whatever food they could for the day’s meals, and then come home to cook lunch and dinner over a fire stoked by the wood they previously gathered.

Day in and day out. No days off. What other option is there? To be a mother in Nzara is more than a full-time job. It is the constant day-to-day struggle to keep you and your children alive.

Now more than ever, mothers in South Sudan need our support.

With support from volunteers like Sarah, CMMB has worked tirelessly to continue supporting pregnant mothers with prenatal care, medicine, medical supplies, trained medical staff and safe places to give birth. Our work continues, and the need is great.

As we celebrate mothers in our own lives this Mother’s Day, your gift today can provide life-saving support to pregnant women around the world.

In grace and peace,

CMMB — Healthier Lives Worldwide

P.S. — South Sudan has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. South Sudanese mothers need your urgent support. Your gift can provide life-saving care to pregnant women who need it most across the globe. CLICK HERE to make your gift.