Parent Cafe offers support for families dealing with medical challenges, featuring organ donors, Paul Osterholm and Maranda Abitz

Posted on: Jan 24th, 2023

FOND DU LAC, WIS (January 20, 2023) –  Social connections promote strong families and are one of the most important of the protective factors… and you never know when one of the people in your network just might save your life! Join guest speakers, Paul Osterholm and Maranda Abitz as they share their story of how their connections led them to make the life saving decision to make a live kidney donation. Challenges, especially medical challenges, can be extremely difficult to navigate. Their heartwarming story illustrates how important personal and social connections are to mental and physical health. Children in attendance will get the opportunity to engage with author Brenda Cortez as she reads her story “HOWL Helps Others,” a story about how kindness is always and helping others is always the best option.

Parent Cafes, a series of three conversations about the challenges and victories involved in being a parent. The sessions, open to any parent or caregiver, will be held from 11:00am – 12:30pm or 4:30pm – 6:00pm on Wednesday, Feb. 1 (sessions March 1 and April 5 to follow). The Parent Cafes, held at the Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac, are presented in partnership with Fond du Lac County’s Partnership for Children (SPROUT) and Family Connections. These free events include a light meal, engaging child programming/museum play and an opportunity for parents and other caregivers to make meaningful connections and engage in conversations about self-care, connections, family dynamics, and more. Community resources are also available for attendees. 

To register for the February 1 Parent Cafe “Give from the Heart, a discussion about Organ Donation and dealing with Medical Challenges”, visit cmfdl.org/visit/programs/parent-cafe/

Photo Caption: Paul Osterholm and Miranda Abitz, both organ donors, will share their stories at the February 1st Parent Cafe held at the Children’s Museum of Fond du Lac. To register for this free program, visit cmfdl.org/visit/programs/parent-cafe/  Paul’s story is featured among other heartwarming stories in “Because of Organ Donation” a collection of stories by Brenda E. Cortez.