Around this time, the suburban faith community organized to address the needs of mothers and children in Boston. The non-denominational Mother's Rest Association was founded in 1903 in Newton to formalize these efforts. Three years later, the entity purchased a property owned by the Beless' family in Needham to carry out their work. At the Mother's Rest home, women could build community, receive safer nourishment for themselves and their children, and learn from other women about caring for children and their homes.
Gloria Greis, Executive Director at the Needham History Center & Museum, summarizes an article from The Needham Chronicle in July, 1910:
"By 1910, Mother’s Rest had hosted 810 women and 870 children. Its annual capacity was around 250 women and children, both native-born and immigrant, and there was a long waiting list. In addition to pure air and blessed sunshine, the home had a resident nurse, an on-call doctor, and also offered nutrition services: “Many cases could be cited of puny, sickly babies brought back to health under the wise care of the nurse; of mothers taught to care properly for their children; of tired, discouraged women restored to normal condition and sent home full of hope and courage.” However, despite its emphasis on health and nutrition, the Rest was not a hospital or clinic: “It is not the aim or desire of the Association to become institutional, but to give each guest an idea of a genuine home, full of personal influence, plainly furnished, with an abundance of well-cooked food, such as any woman might prepare in her own home"..."
Greis continues, "In the late 19th century, the city was crowded and filthy. Before the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, processed foods were filled with noxious ingredients, the milk supply was tainted with tuberculosis, and even meat, when available, was rarely fresh. In poor and immigrant neighborhoods, there were few sources of clean water. Efforts like Mother’s Rest not only provided short-term relief and nutrition, but also some longer-term strategies for maintaining health and improving nutrition upon returning to the city."
Today the CDC recognizes improvements in maternal and child health as one of the top ten public health achievements of the 20th century. Improved hygiene and nutrition, access to medical care and antibiotics, and other accomplishments have resulted in decreased overall infant and maternal mortality, though disparities still exist.