The Innovators
With their own experiences as inspiration, these women and mothers lead communities in new and unexpected ways
There is a saying that every Google search is a potential business idea. A successful business solves a problem. It’s one thing to have an idea for a solution but it's quite another to create and then apply it to life in a meaningful way. In fact, that’s the main difference between creativity and innovation: the application.
We chatted with three women who not only identified a problem to be solved within their own lives, but created and executed a solution by utilizing innovative community building that supports women and fuels their businesses.
Suzanne Thelen: Divorce Squad
Missing holidays with your kids. Attempting not to miss the first day of school photos when it’s not “your day.” Reinventing family traditions. Divorce Squad Founder Suzanne Thelen shares the challenging realities of post-divorce life on social media as a way to remind women that they aren’t alone in this experience. She found herself getting divorced as a working mom with three young children and knows how lonely and overwhelming these circumstances can be.
“Ironically, the only person who knows what you’re really going through is the person you’re divorcing,” Thelen said. She also felt lost navigating the entire process, finding herself in a position she never expected to be in. This overwhelm served as her inspiration to later create Divorce Squad, an online platform that provides people access to professionals who allow them to not only survive the divorce process, but thrive.
Thelen dived into the professional community of divorce experts to carefully construct a resource where people could find every service and support they may need throughout the process.
“Having a squad of professionals backing you up with their support and expertise makes the journey easier to navigate and less overwhelming,” she said. “ I wish I had a Divorce Squad during my divorce and named the business after what I needed.”
Her platform also consists of educational content, brimming with expert advice that honestly and unabashedly tackles topics such as divorcing a narcissist, dating after divorce and surviving your first post-divorce Valentine’s Day.
With an extensive community of professionals made easily accessible in one place online, Thelen wants to expand with a focus on connections between those going through a divorce. She is in the planning stages of adding in-person events where people can learn, share resources and also build a community of support amongst one another.
Erin Defoyd: Birds and Bears
If you’re the creative and curious type – your dream space awaits.
The vibrant, creative and collaborative community of Birds and Bears began in a rustic backyard barn at the Medway, Massachusetts home of founder Erin Defoyd. After a 15 year career in corporate marketing and diversity and inclusion, the mom of three wanted to build an authentic and beautiful community her way and in her own neck of the woods. She and her family opened their barn doors, inviting friends, family and community members to spend time in the space as a way to meaningfully connect and collaborate outside of the more traditional places of gathering like work, home and schools.
In 2020, Birds and Bears moved from the backyard barn to a downtown historic bank building in Holliston, Massachusetts. Due to the pandemic, Defoyd had to pivot and skip years ahead in her business plan, focusing on products and merchandise since in-person gatherings (which would be an integral part of the collective) were out of the question.
Now, the space serves as a cozy den where Defoyd encourages members to “nest and rest, explore and soar, together.” This includes opportunities for co-working, workshops, events, coaching, creativity and more. Scroll through the Bird and Bear’s event listings and you’ll find a diverse range of offerings from “Marketing Monday” office hours and a B-roll content social media workshop, to an introduction to hypnotherapy and an afternoon of abstract art. Common event themes include small business networking, wellness, leadership and creativity, all of which Birds and Bears members can attend for free or at a discount.
The name of the collective is significant and serves as an intentional metaphor for diversity, as birds and bears are different types of animals but still have similar needs. Defoyd applies this belief to the members of her community. “Though we are all different, we all go through very intentional seasons of nesting and resting, so that we can explore and soar,” she said. “How we do these things may be different, but what connects us in this wild world is that we collectively do these things.”
Similar to Thelen’s creation of Divorce Squad, Defoyd said Birds and Bears was a space needed in her own life but that she intentionally created it for the future community that would walk through the collective’s doors. “I did not create this space for me,” she said. “I created it for us..a collective.”
Kimberly Kearns: Sober in The Suburbs
Kimberly Kearns didn’t think she had a drinking problem. In her mind, an alcoholic was someone who couldn’t function and was drinking alone, out of a paper bag. This was a far cry from a suburban mom running a household and who liked to regularly enjoy drinks with friends.
“As a mother, I believed it [drinking] was my reward at the end of a long day at home with the kids,” she said. “All the other moms were doing it at the playdate and carrying their cooler of beer to the baseball game on the weekend. Why did I have the problem? How was I any different? I appeared to be just like everyone else I surrounded myself with, on the sidelines in the evening and nursing my hangover at the bus stop before the gym the next day.”
In 2020, after a night of drinking alone and not remembering putting her kids to bed, Kearns knew she had to make a change. “On that first day that I gave up drinking, I googled ’sober in the suburbs of Boston,’ and I found very little for moms like me,” she said.
This would lead Kearns to write a book, On The Edge of Shattered, and create Sober in The Suburbs – a social club where members can leave pressure and judgements behind and develop authentic connections without alcohol present.
“I am excited to finally offer a forum for people to meet, test out their sober legs and develop lasting friendships,” she said. “We are free to explore relationships without the veil of booze for the first time in years.”
Members can attend free events, and there is also a paid option for those looking for additional opportunities to get to know others in a safe environment. An events calendar is available on the website, where members and non-members can register for events, such as dinners out and afternoon meetups. The website also boasts a comprehensive list of resources, including other online support systems and professional assistance. While based in the Metro-west Boston area, the group is growing, with others leading chapters in their community, including New Hampshire, Connecticut, Texas and Washington DC.
Similar to Thelen and Defoyd, Kearns was inspired to create something based on a need she found in her own life. By putting herself out there, Kearns provides inspiration for others who may be battling similar challenges as she did, and by creating an accepting community, Kearns ultimately is able to foster her own journey, while simultaneously helping others.
By looking within, all three women launched external communities laced with the timeless themes of connections, hope, creativity and support – for both themselves and those who have found their resources and integrated them into their own stories. Developed with innovation and heart, these networks not only promote guidance where you may feel lost (divorce, creativity, sobriety), but they also provide inspiration for others to recognize that speaking our truths and sharing it with others is important. Although the communities featured in this article may not speak to you in a personal way or in your specific season of life, there may be others that will. And if not, well, you can always go and create your own.
Antoinette Hemphill is a writer, mom to three boys, believer in the power of community and founder of Mama Beasts. For a decade, she led a Boston-area stroller fitness community supporting women through the early years of motherhood. Now, she focuses on cultivating a community for the later years through content, events and promoting women’s voices in a variety of creative mediums.