Bears and Advocate Health Care Team Up to Give Moms a Space to Themselves

Chances are you have seen a MAMAVA breastfeeding pod. The pods are present in shopping centers, airports and other spaces where there tend to be a large confluence of people.

In Chicago, this includes Soldier Field. Thanks to the partnership between Advocate Health Care and the Bears, moms attending Bears games will be able to step away into the privacy of their own personal space.

The activation of the already established partnership is one that Doug Carnahan, VP of corporate partnerships for the Bears, is particularly proud of, especially in today’s day and age where consumers can sniff out unauthentic partnerships almost immediately.

Not only do authentic partnerships add more value to consumers, they create better success metrics that, in turn, allow for a team like the Bears to see sustained success.

“Enhancing the fan experience and creating authentic connections with our partners is critical to long-term success,” said Carnahan when talking about the pod.

The establishment of the pod was the result of the Bears partnerships team seeing a trend that would be natural for them to capitalize on as well as the opportunity to potentially bring a partner on board as well.

READ MORE: How Corporate Partnerships are Evolving and How You Can Prepare

As the pieces fell into place, Carnahan and his team knew the perfect partner to turn toward to make the space come to life.

“We identified this amenity as a trend in stadiums and entertainment centers around the country and thought it was the perfect opportunity to tie into our official partnership with Advocate Health Care.”

One of the Bears’ fully integrated partners, Advocate plays a major role in the Bears’ Parent’s Football Safety Clinic, their Mini Monsters Clinics, as well as their breast and ovarian cancer initiatives through Bears Care, the organization’s charitable arm.

COOL: The @ChicagoBears have teamed up with @advocatehealth to bring a branded @MAMAVA breastfeeding pod to Soldier Field. pic.twitter.com/wXpiMEfQOh

— Front Office Sports (@FOS) September 17, 2018

Mini Monsters is a free youth program that brings non-contact football drills to Chicagoland schools and parks, and stresses the importance of healthy eating, physical activity and proper hydration. New this year, the Bears have also partnered with the Chicago Police Department’s CAPS team to have officers help lead each clinic alongside alumni. So far, over 5,500 kids have participated in Mini Monsters across the clinics, training camp and Meijer Bears End Zone and over 100 Chicago Police officers have helped out in Mini Monsters clinics, some of whom have participated in numerous clinics.

Creating partnerships like this is paramount to both the credence of the team and Advocate.

“This is just one of the meaningful ways we utilize our sports partnerships to improve our communities,” said Kelly Jo Golson, chief marketing officer of Advocate Aurora Health, of which Advocate Health Care is a part. “Going to concerts, ballgames and other public events can be stressful and inconvenient for nursing mothers, so we’re proud to partner with the Bears to provide a quiet suite for moms who are seeking a comfortable environment to breastfeed or pump at Soldier Field. It’s another way we continue to advance our mission: to help people live well.”

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Advocate wins, the Bears win, and ultimately the fans win. When measuring a successful partnership, it doesn’t get much better than that.