Shanghai Mamas is a community-based, volunteer-run organisation that started as a Yahoo group back in 2006. Our mission is to provide support, information, and a sense of belonging for mamas, whether you’re new to Shanghai or new to being a mom. To do this, we rely on volunteers to keep the day to day wheels rolling, while our grassroots team keeps our WeChat groups active. The Executive Team are the mamas who plan events, keep the content flowing and our platforms updated to support international families in the city.
As we welcome our new Executive Team, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to previous members for their dedication and hard work, and to existing members who will continue to serve as advisors to the team.
Executive Team
Our President: Evelyn
Kids: Eline (4), Enzo (2)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2020
Shanghai Mama since: 2023
Ask Her About: Travel, eco-friendly and non-toxic products, health and wellness, fitness, raising multicultural kids.
Originally from Mexico, Evelyn moved to China in 2020 and, since both of her children were born and raised here, it quickly felt like home. Becoming a mother in a new city while adapting to a different culture was challenging but rewarding for Evelyn. This experience taught her the importance of community support, which is why she’s now an active volunteer with Shanghai Mamas. Fluent in Spanish, English and German, Evelyn brings a wealth of experience from both the private and public sectors. Before joining Shanghai Mamas, she worked as an economic development director and contributed to various projects and initiatives in Mexico. These experiences have shaped her commitment to meaningful work, and as the visionary leader of our organization, she’s excited to drive its growth and impact.
When she’s not working or volunteering, Evelyn loves to explore the city, try out new workouts, and spend quality time with her friends and family. She’s always up for an adventure and believes in making the most of every moment!
Events Director: Ceci
Kids: Mia (3), Hannah (6 months)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2022
Shanghai Mama since: 2022
Ask Her About: Participating in various city activities (including our ShMamas events), staying physically active by playing soccer, engaging in different exercises and sports.
Born in Venezuela, Ceci has been living in China since 2012. While enjoying China’s food and culture, Ceci met the love of her life and they now have two daughters together. Ceci first heard about Shanghai Mamas through a friend and the community has been a great support in getting to know the city better. “Our Shanghai Mamas groups can help anyone with anything!”
An engineer by profession who speaks three languages (Spanish, English and German), Ceci runs her own business here, specializing in event planning and party decoration. She is a firm believer in helping others, and currently supports the Shanghai Mamas team by creating incredible event experiences for the community.
Operations Manager: Xinxin
Kids: Eli (14), Owen (9)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2007
Shanghai Mama and Staff since: 2020
Ask Her About: Volunteering with community organizations in Shanghai, fostering/adopting animals, and raising kids who love Beijing opera.
From China to England to Belgium and back, Xinxin is locally savvy and understands international family concerns. Xinxin joined the team in 2020 as our Operations Manager after years of experience in the non-profit and social enterprise sector in Shanghai. Currently our only official employee, in between watching her boys and menagerie of pets, she maintains our website, official WeChat account, email and much more. Apart from being fluent in Mandarin and English, Xinxin also manages all the constant Executive Team admin requests with a smile – she is the wheel that keeps us moving!
Social Media Manager: Sarah
Kids: Joey (11), Harry (6)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2024
Shanghai Mama since: 2025
Ask Her About: Shanghai Mamas Coffee Mornings (that’s how I was introduced to the org!), Shanghai American School (SAS), skiing, dancing, Bravo TV, beauty products and books.
From Massachusetts in the USA, Sarah grew up by the ocean close to Cape Cod, and now has a home outside of Boston. Her two boys, Joseph and Harrison, both go to the Shanghai American School in Pudong. Her husband’s job brought the family to Shanghai, and previous roles have taken them to Cincinnati, Ohio and Bremen, Germany. Sarah’s career in Marketing & Sales has been within the consumer products industry and she worked with well-known brands like L’Oreal, Cover Girl, Revlon, Mars and Kimberly Clark. She’s currently taking a sabbatical while in China and is looking forward to contributing to the Shanghai Mamas organization by creating social media content.
Editorial Manager: Naz
Kids: Zoe (5)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2015
Shanghai Mama since: 2021
Ask Her About: Anything (she’s always up for a good chat), travel, camping， activities in Shanghai, pets, yoga, books.
Naz comes from Melbourne, Australia and has lived in Shanghai for nearly 10 years. She was a scientist (and will forever be one at heart), but transitioned to being a full-time mum when her daughter was born. The switch from being in research to motherhood was a challenging experience and seeking support from others was how she found Shanghai Mamas! Through weekly meetups and chats in our multiple groups, she became interested in learning and discussing the myths and truths about pregnancy and mother/parenthood. Drawing upon her research background and wanting to give back to the community, Naz became a content writer for Shanghai Mamas in 2022. To pursue her love of reading and writing, Naz took on the role of Editorial Manager in 2025. In this role, she hopes to continue bringing insightful and inspiring content to the Shanghai Mamas community on living in Shanghai with kids, being a mum and healthy family living.
Sponsorship Director: RVenus
Kids: George (3)
Arrived in Shanghai: 2007, 2017
Shanghai Mama since: 2021
Ask Her About: Food, workouts, Taobao shopping, Shanghai life, travel tips.
Born in Brunei and raised in Australia, RVenus first arrived in Shanghai in 2007 as a fresh graduate on an internship. After a few years back in Australia working on State Government projects, in 2013 she embarked on a new adventure in Taipei. She joined an international company there, where she played a key role in scaling the business across various functions and travelled the world. This was how she met her British husband, whose job later brought her back to Shanghai in 2017.
While pregnant with her first child, she realised she didn’t have many friends with children at the time. An online search led her to Shanghai Mamas, and she quickly became a regular at the Jing’an Coffee Mornings and Night Outs. As a full-time mom with her son attending daycare more regularly, she found herself with more time and was eager to use her professional background to give back to the community that had supported her. As the Sponsorship Director, she is excited to build meaningful relationships with both current and new sponsors/partners, empowering the small but mighty team to help ShMamas continue to thrive.
Alumni Advisors: Jess
Kid’s age: 12
Arrived in Shanghai: 2004
Shanghai Mama since: 2012
Ask Her About: Food, yoga, wine, middle school and all its glory.
Jess had already been in Shanghai for many years when she became a mom. Taking maternity leave before giving birth, she attended a coffee morning where she met a few people and had a fabulous time. With the forums on the website being very active at that time, she found herself spending a lot of time on there, eventually volunteering to help monitor and run the website.
After her son was born, she participated in coffee mornings, play dates, and made wonderful friends through Shanghai Mamas. The community became an important part of their lives. Wanting to give back and learn new things, she joined the Executive Team. Organizing events, parties, and managing the website were all first-time experiences for her, but she embraced the challenges as opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Several website revamps and major events later, including the memorable YCIS party, she feels she has evolved into a more confident and capable leader. With her son now 12 years old, many of the significant moments in his life are connected to Shanghai Mamas. Joining the organization has proved to be a life-changing decision for her, and she is grateful for taking that initial step into the community.
Co-Founder: Melanie
Kids’ ages: 16 and 19
Year arrived in Shanghai: 2003
Shanghai Mama since: 2006
Ask Her About: Breastfeeding/lactation issues, volunteering with various NGOs/community organizations in Shanghai, mental health awareness, parenting teens in Shanghai, school options in Shanghai, gender equity, book club, bullet journaling.
Melanie Ham is one of the original Shanghai Mamas. Yep, she’s been here since the Yahoo group days in 2006. She’s in charge of the money and legal stuff to make sure we stay in the black, pay our taxes, and stay out of (real) trouble! She has two teenagers, two big dogs, a flock of chickens, and dozens of houseplants.
She is currently living in North Carolina where she is working on a masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, but will return to Shanghai one day soon.
Support Team
Shanghai Mamas has a growing directory of WeChat groups for a variety of topics related to international families living in Shanghai. We’d like to thank our WeChat group admins who help maintain the inviting and friendly space for our community members online. Special thanks to Shanghai Mamas Naz, Evelyn, Hannah, Bernice, Barbara who organize our neighbourhood coffee mornings, to Ceci and Evelyn who organize our ladies night out, to Abi who organizes our spa days, and to Sarah who runs our book club.
Last but not least, we’d like to thank our volunteer writers and editing team: Naz, Bernice, Hannah, Ollie and Anais who keep the insightful articles and event news going on our official WeChat account. All of this is only possible because of the dedicated team members who invest their time, energy, and talent into supporting our community!
