Community Corner

Montville Group Helps Pregnant Military Wife

The increasingly-popular group WHO threw a military wife a baby shower this month while her husband was deployed.

WHO is beginning to catch on.

WHO, or We Help Others, was started by Montville’s Lizz Adams and her daughter at the beginning of this year. They got together with some friends, and with the help on Montville Social Services, helped out three families over a three-month period.

Then, the publicity came. First, a Montville Patch article and then a piece by WTNH. Their last event, which was held on April 15, was the most successful yet, with people across the state coming together to throw an anonymous military wife a baby shower.

The group got the mother-to-be “all the essentials, and some fun stuff too,” Adams said. And when the woman sent a thank-you message through Montville Social Services that found its way onto Facebook, all of the whos in WHO-ville became emotional.

“Just tears to my eyes,” Adams said, describing how she felt when she saw the message. “It just felt really good to have made a difference in someone’s life.”

The Event

The group, WHO, gets an anonymous family each month from Montville Social Service, which they help out in some way. For April, they were given a pregnant woman married to a man in the military who was deployed. The baby was due before her husband was expected home, and the woman was new to the area, so she didn’t really know anyone.

WHO sprung into action, deciding to throw a baby shower for the woman. Their efforts were publicized on Montville Patch and WTNH, which greatly increased the exposure of the group, as well as the amount of gifts, Adams said.

Many people began to contact WHO, asking how they could help. The group set up a registry for the woman at Babies R’ Us, and soon the girl had “pretty much got everything she needs to bring a baby home,” Adams said.  

On Sunday, April 14, about a dozen members of WHO, along with about eight Montville boy scouts, met at Fair Oaks School in Oakdale and wrapped all the presents. Then Robin Washington of Montville Social Services took them to the anonymous woman.

The woman wanted to relay a message to WHO, so she asked Washington to post something on WHO’s Facebook page. The message is posted below, and brought tears to the group members’ eyes:

"I knew that living the Military life would be lonely at times, which was one of the many reasons I was so excited to find out I was going to be a Mom. I knew that we'd get by with help of our basic needs from Social Services. When Robin delivered a basket and card to me on Sunday, I couldn't believe that a group of people I've never met would do something so sweet. But when she brought me out to her car filled with baskets and gifts everything changed at that moment. I felt loved and welcomed into a community of very generous, kind people. I called Robin Monday morning and told her that I immediately went into the baby's room to be sure it was all real. There is no way you can possibly understand how grateful and happy I am for all you've done. With so many horrible things happening, all I have to do is look around and see how much good there is in the world. I only hope that someday I can give back, even in a very small way, to make a difference in someone's life like you all have. Thank you from the bottom of my heart."


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