Submitting your portfolio once you’ve been nominated as a Mother of the Year® can be intimidating, especially if your nomination is the first exposure to American Mothers, Inc. you’ve ever had. As women we are hardwired to be humble, so taking the time to actually toot your own horn is probably WAY out of your comfort zone.
If you are on the fence about whether to open that link and fill out those three simple questions about motherhood and what gets you going every morning, here are a few reasons you should give it a little extra consideration.
1. Convention: This year American Mothers will meet April 28-30, 2019 at the historic Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC for three days of learning, networking and good ol’ fashioned mom fun… and of course visits to Capitol Hill, a fancy dress up gala, and maybe some dancing (definitely dancing). Submitting your portfolio extends you an invitation to attend the national convention, and if you are selected as the honoree for your state you get to attend FOR FREE!
Mother of the Year, Pauline Rose Moore)
2. Congressional Visits: During the convention you will be given the opportunity to join the other representatives from your state for a meeting with your elected officials in Washington, DC. Nothing makes you feel more like a boss than walking through the hallowed halls of Congress with a group of newly made mom friends, but you won’t get to hear the click-clack of your heels on the marble floors if you don’t submit your portfolio.
3. Money, money, money, money: Chances are, you have a non-profit organization close to your heart, and we want that organization to be close to our hearts too. Every 2019 state Mother of the Year® who attends convention is eligible to receive a Golden Rule Grant to bring home to her charity of choice, but the only way to become an honoree and get that charitable “cha-ching” is to submit your portfolio.
Native American Pregnant Mothers Project
4. Exposure: Not in a scary kind of way, but in a media and positive attention kind of way. Out of hundreds of nominations from all over the country, only one Mother of the Year® will be named from each state, with only one National Mother of the Year® chosen at the end of convention. Imagine all of the positive publicity you could garner for the things you are passionate about by being recognized as an awesome mom! Being selected as a Mother of the Year® gives you a platform to talk about whatever you want America to know. Bullying? Cystic Fibrosis? Human trafficking? Opioid addiction? Screen time? Nothing gets people to pay attention like hearing from a Mother of the Year® (and make sure to tell us what you’re passionate about when you submit your portfolio!).
5. Guilt: Like all moms, we know what works (and lets face it… guilt works). We understand that you are busy and might not feel like you have the time to submit your portfolio. But consider this: someone went to a lot of trouble to tell us about you and the incredible things you are doing in your home and around your community. By not submitting your portfolio you might as well just slap that person in the face (figuratively of course… we would never condone violence). So do it for your daughter/sister/friend/neighbor/husband who nominated you and submit your portfolio!
BONUS: Submitting your portfolio and attending the National Convention gets you up close and personal with our 2019 American Mother of Achievement (to be announced on January 19, 2019)!
Are you a past Mother of the Year®? Help us out — what did we forget?
