From Local Leader to Global Team

How years of belonging, serving and saying yes led Dawn Beavers and Andrea Durost from local MomCo groups to helping moms around the world.

Long before Dawn Beavers and Andrea Durost were supporting MomCo leaders across the globe, they were simply women who found themselves welcomed into a local community — and discovered that belonging could change everything.

Today, Dawn serves as Africa Team Project Coordinator, and Andrea serves as Global Project Coordinator. Together, they bring more than 40 years of MomCo experience to work that is helping local leaders reach moms in communities around the world.

How did MomCo first become part of your story?

Dawn: I was a brand-new mom, and we had moved while I was pregnant. I didn’t know anyone, so I Googled “mom group near me,” and MOPS popped up in the next town over. I found instant friends who took me and my baby in and loved us. Our family even began going to church again because of MOPS, and we turned back to our faith.

Andrea: A friend at church asked me to help with MOPPETS while my husband was away on a year-long military deployment. Midway through that year, I became pregnant, and the leadership team insisted I come back in the fall — this time as a mom. Their welcome, friendship and support, especially through another deployment the following year, were invaluable.

You both moved into leadership pretty quickly. What drew you in?

Dawn: My second year, I was asked to be the hospitality lead. I loved decorating, so it felt like a natural fit. After another move, I served in hospitality again, then as KidCo lead and eventually Coordinator. I learned that leadership wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be — and that serving together created even deeper friendships.

Andrea: In each of the three local groups I’ve been part of, I stepped into leadership after my first year. I’ve served as a table lead, marketing lead, and mentor mom, along with helping in hospitality and as an assistant coordinator. Leadership taught me servanthood and the importance of people over programs.

Is there a local group moment that still captures what MomCo means to you?

Dawn: I remember a Christmas meeting when I was Coordinator. One mom shared her testimony, our mentor mom made her famous homemade hot chocolate, and we sang Christmas songs together. I left feeling completely filled up and thankful for God’s mercy on me and our group.

Andrea: One of my groups walked through an incredibly difficult season of loss and suffering. Again and again, the moms showed up for one another, with prayer, meals and simply their presence. Watching women compassionately carry one another through those moments showed me what it really means to experience motherhood together.

What made you want to serve beyond your own local group?

Dawn: When my daughter started kindergarten, I had a little more time and wanted to give back to the organization that had given me so much. MomCo had been a lifeline for me, and I wanted every mom to have the opportunity to find that kind of community.

Andrea: As a military spouse for more than 20 years, change was constant. When my husband was preparing to retire, I wanted to find a community and ministry where I could continue serving as we transitioned into civilian life. I believed deeply in MomCo’s mission, so joining the volunteer team felt like a natural next step.

How did volunteering change the way you saw MomCo?

Dawn: It showed me the bigger picture — this global sisterhood. I attended MOMCON and made even more lifelong friends. I also helped run a MomCo Facebook group and watched women from all over the world connect and help one another. I began to see just how much was happening far beyond my own community.

Andrea: Meeting moms from so many different groups and hearing how MomCo had impacted their lives helped me understand the broader scope of the ministry. Eventually, I began helping register new groups in Africa, compile data for our global impact report, and publish translations of MomCo curriculum.

And eventually, volunteering became your work. What do you do today?

Dawn: I support MomCo in Africa by coordinating curriculum, training, and document translations into 13 African languages. I register groups that don’t have internet access, support leaders as they navigate challenges, and work with our global leaders to help create the MomCo experience across the continent.

Andrea: I help produce MomCo resources in more than 30 languages and provide administrative support to 11 Global Ministry Developers and their regions. My goal is to make it easier for our global volunteers to support local leaders by giving them resources and tools in their own language.

What has surprised you most about seeing MomCo from the global level?

Dawn: How much our team pours into leaders around the world. There is so much investment happening through cohorts and relationships. Leaders who connect with those opportunities are becoming part of something much bigger than their own group.

Andrea: The scale of the vision — and how much such a small team has accomplished with limited resources. It’s remarkable to see how far the mission reaches.

After all these years, how does your local group experience still influence the work you do?

Dawn: I served in nearly every leadership position in my local group, so when a leader comes to me with a challenge, I understand. I know what it feels like to be in her shoes.

Andrea: I’ve been a MomCo mom, a local leader, a volunteer, and someone who has lived overseas. Those experiences help me understand many of the challenges our global volunteers face. They inspire me to make their work easier so that more moms, children, and communities can experience the hope of Jesus.

For both Dawn and Andrea, the journey from local group to global ministry wasn’t one giant leap. It was a series of invitations: come belong, come serve, come lead, come help another mom find what you found.

And years later, that same welcome is traveling farther than either of them could have imagined.