Celebrating friendship in Mothers’ Union

For 150 years, Mothers’ Union has been uniting people and helping form lasting relationships. From local branch meetings and community projects to links with members across the world, relationships have grown and flourished. It is these connections that make Mothers’ Union feel like a family, with relationships often spanning years and distance. 

One such friendship is that of Marilyn Oulds and Sue Habgood. Many years ago, as part of an initiative to strengthen links across dioceses and countries, members were given Prayer Partners. Marilyn, from the Diocese of Brisbane in Australia, was paired with Sue from the Diocese of Guildford in England. Neither of them imagined that a simple promise to pray for one another would lead to decades of friendship. 

At first, they exchanged prayers and news of their families, sharing the joys and challenges of everyday life. Despite living in different countries, Marilyn and Sue made the distance feel smaller through regular contact, until they eventually visited one another in their homes, shared precious time together and became part of each other’s family stories. 

They celebrated birthdays, weddings and the arrival of grandchildren, and stood beside one another through illness and difficult times. Today both women are grandmothers, and their eldest grandchildren are close in age, another lovely connection between their families. An added blessing has been the friendship that has developed between their husbands.  

Marilyn sums it up beautifully: ‘I have made so many precious friendships through Mothers’ Union, but the bond I share with Sue is truly something special and means so much to me.’  

Sometimes friendships begin through organised programmes and partnerships, and sometimes they begin in the simplest of ways. Six years ago, Di Waller, Diocesan President for Chester Diocese, shared on the Mothers’ Union Facebook page how much she appreciated a newly published set of three Mothers’ Union prayer books. Her post was seen by Sandra Sullivan in Nova Scotia, who commented to ask how she might obtain a set for herself. 

Di invited Sandra to send her a private message with her address, ordered a set on her behalf and posted them across the Atlantic. The two women have remained friends on Facebook ever since, sharing news and encouragement despite living thousands of miles apart. 

This June, at the Annual Gathering and MU150 celebrations, they met in person for the first time. It was an emotional and joyful occasion, making an already special day even more memorable. Di describes it simply as ‘Mothers’ Union hands reaching out across the world. 

For others, connection within Mothers’ Union is not only about friendship, but also about family and belonging across generations. Helen Russ reflects on how that sense of belonging has been part of her own story: ‘For me it is generational; my grandmother and mother were both members and I always knew I would join at some point.’ 

Those words will resonate with many members whose own Mothers’ Union journey began long before they signed their membership forms. The values of faith, service and friendship are often passed down through families, linking one generation to the next. 

As we celebrate 150 years of Mothers’ Union, we give thanks for the friendships that have been formed, and we look forward to those still to come. Across oceans, time zones and generations, Mothers’ Union members continue to discover what Mary Sumner knew from the beginning: that lives are changed when people come together to pray, support and care for one another.