Our Mission
Our ministry is dedicated to serve women who are new moms or are preparing to become new moms. We all know the saying, “It takes a village to raise our kids.” We want The Blankie Brigade at St. Mark Church to be your village. The Blankie Brigade is a group of men and women who are available to offer support for your emotional, spiritual and physical well-being. Parenthood is and will continue to be an exciting time for you and we would love to stand by you and support you and your family during your journey, from pregnancy through to the second year.
If you are a new mom or father and need the help of the Blankie Brigade let us know here.
Pregnancy Care Resources
About the book: Pregnancy is not just a trek from one medical appointment to another but a journey of the heart. Here at last is a guidebook through its sacred terrain. For each week, Orthodox doula Laura Jansson provides a new reflection on a theme specific to the ground covered at that stage. From one milestone to the next, she helps us unearth the spiritual treasures buried within the physical experiences of childbearing. These are gifts of love from a merciful God who reaches out to us, making a perilous expedition into a path of salvation.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Ancient Faith
Buy it on Amazon
About the book: Annalisa Boyd knows motherhood—its challenges, its joys, and its potential for spiritual growth. In this prayer book she offers a wide selection of prayers mothers can use to intercede for their families as well as to grow in virtue themselves.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Ancient Faith
Are you or someone you know expecting? Let us know!
We have a quarterly baby welcoming celebration at our second service on Sundays @ 11:30am. If you or someone you know is pregnant, let us know here and we will add them to our list.
First Year Resources
About the book: Traditionally, the Orthodox Church has appointed forty days of rest and seclusion after childbirth for mothers to recover from the rigors of birth and get to know their new babies. In the modern world, it can be difficult to understand how to use this time to the fullest in the way it was intended. The authors of A Sacred Beginning - a therapist and a family physician who are both mothers themselves - come to the rescue with a resource that addresses the spiritual, emotional, and physical aspects of a mother's recovery from birth and embarkation on her new life. Whether you are preparing to birth your first baby or your tenth, you will find in this book a wealth of spiritual food, comfort, encouragement, and sound advice to guide you, one postpartum day at a time.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Ancient Faith
Buy it on Amazon
The foundation of positive parenting rests on five principles: attachment, respect, proactive parenting, empathetic leadership, and positive discipline. These five principles go hand in hand to both build a strong bond and to position you to be the effective leader your child needs to guide him through childhood.
About the book: The Orthodox Christian tradition is filled with wisdom and guidance about the biblical path of salvation. Yet this guidance remains largely inaccessible to parents and often disconnected from the parenting challenges we face in our homes. Parenting Toward the Kingdom will help you make the connections between the spiritual life as we understand it in the Orthodox Church and the ongoing challenges of raising children. It takes the best child development research and connects it with the timeless truths of our Christian faith to offer you real strategies for navigating the challenges of daily life.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Ancient Faith
Buy it on Amazon
About the Book: 1-2-3 Magic program addresses the difficult task of child discipline with humor, keen insight, and proven experience. The technique offers a foolproof method of disciplining children ages two through 12 without arguing, yelling, or spanking.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Amazon
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Amazon
About the book: If we can be sure our children have strong faith in God and His Word, and the love of God in their hearts, then we can trust that they are set for eternity. Our prayers play a big part in helping them achieve that.
~Stormie
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Amazon
About the book: Stormie Omartian and her husband, Michael, spent 20 years raising their children...and more than 40 years praying for them. Now, in 32 short, easy-to-read chapters, Stormie shares how you can pray through each stage of your child's life, from early childhood to adulthood.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Amazon
About the book: The Mommy Manual is an encouraging book that will give moms the tools they need to plant a firm foundation from which to raise spiritually, physically, and emotionally healthy children. Barbara Curtis teaches readers six essential keys to successful parenting.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Amazon
Speak to a professional
Are you having a hard time adjusting? Do you need guidance or coping skills? Do you need someone to just listen to your struggles? Then reach out to one of our professionals to help you along your journey.
Mona Rizk
Mona has a heart for serving the families of her community so she pursued and completed the Family Ministry Program of the Diocese of the Southern United States. She served at our sister church in Roswell, St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church, for 18 years in various ministries including “New Comers Youth Meeting” and “The Joyful Home” marriage ministry. Mona has a passion for serving the family unit and she is ready to serve you as a member of the Blankie Brigade here at St. Mark church. She is a counselor who specializes in supporting parents, new mothers, postpartum, married couples, and teens.
Contact Mona:
Phone: 770-598-7813
Articles by Mona
Interested in joining The Blankie Brigade?
Our ministry is operated by volunteers who feel called to serve expecting and new moms and their families.
If you feel called to serve in this ministry and would like to join our team, please fill out this form. One of us will get back to you to discuss details.
For further questions about The Blankie Brigade ministry nor how you can get involved, please contact Maggie Ishak @ 864-313-0844 or email Maggie Ishak.
Other Resources…
About the book: Infertility ranks among the hardest griefs a couple can face. Yet this painful issue is all too often neglected in both Church and society. Under the Laurel Tree traces one God-fearing couple’s journey through the emotional turmoil of childlessness. By following the story of Saints Joachim and Anna, this book helps individuals and couples navigate the loss inherent in infertility amid the pain of shame, separation, anger, bargaining, and blamelessness. In walking alongside Joachim and Anna, we encounter not only a life-giving template for grief, but also the path back to ourselves, our partner, and our God-given vocation of eucharistic thanksgiving.
Purchase the book:
Buy it on Ancient Faith
Buy it on Amazon
About the book: Hope and healing for those who suddenly find themselves in the most terrible sort of grief. For those who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, or the death of a child within the first year, this gentle resource offers:
stories of hope and wisdom
practical advice and guidance, based on the experience of many
comfort and ways to honor and remember
Naming the Child creates a community of love and support for bereaving parents and siblings, written with a light touch and sensitive spirit.
Purchase it:
Buy it on Ancient Faith Bookstore
About the book: This book is a simple book of letters written for you, a grieving loss dad, from other loss dads who are living and surviving after the death of their precious child. The fathers speaking through these pages offer support and recognition to let you know that you are not alone. They are here with you.
Purchase it:
Buy it on Amazon