Before the walk begins, a group of mothers swap stories — an upcoming birthday, a full night’s sleep, a visit from extended family.
Ashley Griffin and her sister started Gainesville’s Mom Walk Collective chapter in 2024 when they realized they both wanted a way to talk to other local moms.
“Watching so many moms do it so many different ways, and all be successful, is really empowering,” Griffin said.
The Mom Walk Collective is an organization bringing mothers together through walks in their communities, designed to combat isolation and foster community.
Today, what began as one local meetup started by the Mom Walk Collective’s founder Jamie Easton in California is now a network spanning more than 350 cities across the U.S., Canada and beyond.
Mothers in recent years have reported increases in fair or poor mental health, and gatherings in this network serve as an important social lifeline.
After having her daughter, Lennon, Griffin realized how important it is to be surrounded by people who know your struggles.
“I started to understand the difficulties that motherhood can bring, and sometimes how low you can feel,” she said. “My sister was my community, and I wanted to make sure that other people had community — their village, their person to reach out to.”
Gainesville’s Mom Walk group hosts twice-monthly walks where mothers can socialize, share experiences and build friendships. It celebrated its first anniversary Oct. 12.
In the beginning, Griffin said, there was a lot of uncertainty and anxiety. Now, she said it's “easy,” knowing she has an authentic group behind her no matter how messy or difficult life gets.
After Griffin’s sister stepped down as the walk’s co-ambassador, Lillian John stepped up to fill the position. She was drawn to the aspect of the role that involved interacting and coordinating with vendors that partnered with the walk, because it gave her the opportunity to learn more about the city.
After moving to Gainesville with her then 2-month-old son, John realized how valuable having incentive to leave the house and spend time outside was when she knew so few in the area.
“I felt like it was super brave to do,” she said. “There are so many moms doing this type of stuff, and that just encouraged me.”
“Support means having a person that I can communicate with every day. It's the friend who's texting me right now with six messages because both of our kids are asleep, knowing that we're making plans to see each other,” John said. “Those people who are in a similar position and are trying to make sense of this role and what [motherhood] looks like.”
The sentiment was echoed by another mom in the group, Kathleen Braneck. She said a lot of new moms have trouble maintaining adult relationships because of how busy life becomes.
It’s harder to go out and meet new people, especially because they’re often in “different stages in life,” Braneck added.
“When you're caring for little ones all day … you don't realize how straining it is until you go and talk to other adults for the first time in a few days and realize what you missed and how refreshing it is,” she said.
Looking forward, Griffin hopes to offer moms in the group a chance to go out together and grow closer to each other.
“We've been really wanting to do a moms’ night out, a no-kids moms-focus kind of thing,” Griffin said. “It's been hard because we're both not very good at leaving our kids.”
The most powerful thing about the Mom Walk Collective, John added, was seeing moms come back again and again, drawn by the friendships they formed that blossomed outside of its events.
“The coolest part about Mom Walk is … meeting moms out in the wild,” Griffin said. “We met at the Mom Walk, now our kids are becoming friends, we do life together.”
The Gainesville Mom Walk Collective’s upcoming events can be found on the group’s Instagram. All moms are welcome, with or without their children.