The next Not Mom Summit has been rescheduled to Friday, October 6 and Saturday, October 7, 2017. These Summits bring together “women without children regardless of cause,” and give voice to the many roads that lead women not to become mothers. I invite you to be part of it! Here is a quick recap of the last Summit in October 2015:
The First Not Mom Summit
On October 9-10, 2015, over 100 women from as far away as Shanghai gathered in Cleveland, Ohio for the first Not Mom Summit. Spearheaded by Karen Malone Wright who runs the site, The Not Mom, it was first time women without children by choice, chance or circumstance came together for presentations, discussions, and connection. It was a great success!
At the first Summit, I had the opportunity attend, facilitate a break out session and introduce keynote speaker Meghan Daum. She is the editor of Selfish Shallow and Self-Absorbed: Sixteen Writers on the Decision Not to Have Children, and the author of The UnSpeakable and Other Subjects of Discussion, which includes a moving piece on her decision to have no children.
After the conference I was inspired to post on my takeaways from the experience. Themes included:
Whether by choice, chance or circumstance, women without children want to find and connect with women like themselves.
How they become women without children may be different, but they share many of the same experiences.
The Not Mom Summit fosters powerful community-building.
If you are a woman who has no children by choice, chance or circumstance, I encourage you to look into attending the 2nd Not Mom Summit.
It is the only international conference for and about women of its kind. At the next Summit, one of my favorite Not Moms out there – Jody Day – will be one of the keynote speakers. Jody is the author of Rocking the Life Unexpected, and the founder of Gateway Women, a global friendship and support network for women with no children not-by-choice.
I am going to attend, and will be part of the speaker line-up again. Stay tuned!
The women at the Not Mom Summits give voice to the many roads that lead women not to become mothers. I invite you to be part of it!
Together, they and all Not Moms around the world exemplify an expansion of what it means to be a woman in today’s society.