There is a woman you may not know much about.

She gets up before the sun, not for quiet devotions, but because her child had another night terror. She sits in IEP meetings, therapy waiting rooms, and courtrooms. She fills out paperwork that never ends. She loves a child whose first chapter was written in trauma, neglect, or loss — and she has made it her life's work to help that child rewrite the rest of the story.

She is an adoptive mama. A foster mama. A mama of a child with special needs.

She is one of the most selfless people on the planet — and she is exhausted.

We believe she deserves a weekend just for her.

The Restful Hearts Retreat is a donation-funded, fully free retreat hosted by Aurora Ministries — a 501(c)(3) non-profit — specifically for women who are mom-ing kids from hard places.

This is not a conference. It is not a workshop. It is not another thing on her to-do list.

It is a gift.

A weekend of rest, renewal, and restoration — where these mamas can set down the weight they carry every single day and simply be — daughters of the Most High God, loved, seen, and worthy of care.

What the weekend includes:

1. All lodging, meals, and snacks — fully covered, no cost to attendees
2. Guided sessions on rest, boundaries, and grace-based renewal
3. One-on-one and group time for connection with women who get it
4. Worship, prayer, and Scripture-rooted encouragement
5. A wellness treatment (because her body deserves rest too)
6. A welcome bag filled with tools to carry the retreat home with her
7. Workbook and session materials to continue the journey

No registration fee. No sliding scale. No barriers. Just rest.

Our goal is to host two retreats in 2026 — one in the spring and one in the fall — in a central U.S. location, easy to fly into, and far from the daily demands of home.

Every dollar raised goes directly to making these retreats possible. Aurora Ministries is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit — your donation is tax-deductible.

Why does this matter?

Research consistently shows that adoptive and foster parents experience burnout, secondary trauma, and compassion fatigue at significantly higher rates than the general population. Many of these moms are holding families together while processing their own grief, joy, confusion, and love — often without a community that truly understands.

When a mama is restored, her whole family feels it.

When she is poured into, she pours out more freely.

When she rests, she returns, not just better, but different.

We cannot do this without you.

A gift of any size moves us closer to opening the doors of Restful Hearts for 20 women who desperately need this weekend.

1. $25 covers a mama's welcome bag
2. $75 covers her wellness treatment
3. $150 covers her meals for the weekend
4. $300 covers her lodging for the weekend
5. $850 sponsors a full retreat spot for one mama
6. $5,000 sponsors an entire retreat table (6 women)
7. $18,000 fully funds one complete retreat

Will you help us give these mamas the rest they've earned?

Every mama who walks through the doors of Restful Hearts does so because someone like you said yes.

"She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future." — Proverbs 31:25

With deep gratitude,

Candice Rockel

Co-Founder, Aurora Ministries Attorney | Certified Success Coach | Author | Keynote Speaker