History of Side By Side

How Side By Side Began

In 1987, my husband, Tim, decided to leave the Navy and continue his medical training at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. When I heard his decision for our future, a vision from God came into my mind. That vision was to start an international Bible study in this new place. After all, many people from all over the world came to Mayo Clinic for medical training and for physical healing--so wouldn’t that be the perfect place to tell them about Jesus?

Once we arrived in Rochester, it took me many months to act on that vision and to invite women to this international Bible study. My feelings of inadequacy, rejection, and a basic cowardice to try something this different slowed my progress to start. I tried joining the women’s Bible study at my church, but I did not fit in. The women were all quite nice, but one woman said to me, “You are a doctor’s wife--you don’t have any problems.” Hearing that statement convinced me that she did not understand me or my life at all. I then decided it was my time to venture out (and get out of my comfort zone) and to act on the vision given to me by God. And so, I asked five women--all wives of residents who were new to town--to join me for a Bible study in my home. All of them agreed to participate and so we began at my kitchen table learning more about God and loving one another in the fall of 1988.

A year later, this little group of 6 residents' wives had grown to 18. We were now occupying three homes to accommodate the increased number of women and the children they brought in tow. Six months after that, we moved to an even larger space in a welcoming church where we all could meet at the same time and share our childcare expenses. By the time my husband's training was over, 40 women were attending Side By Side each week.

Many women who came to Side By Side had never attended a Bible study before, while others may have been in Bible studies all their lives. Side By Side was a safe place to ask deep questions and all women were welcomed and loved. We found a common bond in the fact that we were all in a healthcare marriage, and provided encouragement, friendship, and support for one another.

Side By Side Continues to Grow

Side By Side continued to grow and in 2001, a group of insightful women decided that we should be in every medical community across the country. Because simply, the model of building God's kingdom and walking alongside women in medical marriages just had to be shared. With this mission in mind, these faithful women began the process of writing down what we do, how we do it, and why we do it. We also diligently prayed for God to direct our steps.

In 2005, we connected with Christian Medical and Dental Association (CMDA) and became their ministry for women who were married to doctors and dentists. Being a part of a larger organization with a solid Christian medical focus and with many years of successful management has aided us greatly in our growth.

Side By Side Today

Today, we are still seeing God’s hand growing the faith of women in Side By Side. He has blessed us with 90+ chapters of Side By Side. Many of our chapters have been started by women who moved to a new community without a Side By Side chapter. These women missed the vital connection with other medical wives so they raised their hands to learn how to lead a new chapter. We know that over 1,800 women in medical marriages are meeting regularly in chapters of Side By Side. Five of our Side By Side chapters are international, and support women in medical marriages in Japan, Africa and the West Indies. Side By Side also has a virtual chapter for women who live in communities without the presence of an actual chapter. We have women who connect on social media: Our Side By Side Facebook group has 3,100 members communicating and networking, and over 650 connect with us on Instagram. Side By Side also sends a monthly encouraging devotional to 800 inboxes.