Chicken soup? Check. Birthday balloons? Delivered. Laundry? Folded and returned. A growing number of college parents are paying someone else to handle the little things from far away.
The people who do the job are called “Rent-A-Moms,” and they are building businesses in college towns across the country. The New York Post profiled two of them, and one package runs as high as $2,495 a semester.
A Former Uber Driver Turns Rides For Students Into A Full-Time “Bama Mama” Business
In Alabama, Carrie Eckhardt spends hours simmering chicken soup for a college student with the sniffles, taking breaks to wash and fold laundry. She is known as the “Bama Mama.”
Eckhardt is a former Uber driver near the University of Alabama. She told The Post she got the idea while driving students who were swamped by Greek life obligations and heavy coursework, and she began offering services in January 2026 to lighten their load.
Neither she nor the St. Louis woman in the story is tending to her own child. They are on the payroll of parents who may have waved goodbye at the dorm but are not quite ready to retire from mothering.
$1,295 For “Peace Of Mind,” $2,495 For “Mama’s Got You!”
Eckhardt offers multi-tiered packages. The “Peace of Mind” plan costs $1,295 per semester and comes with laundry services, a monthly check-in paired with a hug and a gift box, and a “Finals Week Survival Kit” packed with treats.
The premium “Mama’s Got You!” tier costs $2,495. It adds monthly dorm cleaning for up to three rooms and a comforter wash once a semester, plus complimentary dry-cleaning pickup and return and monthly in-person check-ins.
She also has an à la carte menu with pampering options like massages and facials, sick-care soup delivery and airport drives for students visiting home. Parents can pick and choose to build their own semester package.
Birthday celebrations are her most requested service. She works within a parent’s budget on everything from floral arrangements and cupcakes to custom balloon displays.
Local businesses share in the profit too, since she sources supplies from neighborhood florists and laundromats.
“I Am Not A Spy,” The Bama Mama Insists, And Parents Get Updates On A Need-To-Know Basis
Eckhardt insists she is not a spy. She updates parents on a strict need-to-know basis, including illnesses or emergencies, and her check-in packages include a sweet treat, a hug and a selfie sent to parents so they know their child is well.
“There are kids that are doing great and killing it and made for college, but there are a lot who are struggling,” Eckhardt told The Post. “Some were on top of the world at home and a big fish in a little school and now they’re a little fish in a big school.”
She is a foster and adoptive mother of 12 children of her own and says caring for young people is her lifelong calling. When she delivers soup and a hug to a student, she told The Post, she finds herself worrying about them and checking in again days later.
“It’s Not Coddling And It’s Not Taking Away Independence”
Critics say these services pamper Gen Z. Eckhardt pushes back and compares her work to the help other families already hire.
“There are families working full time and taking care of kids and they hire people to come and help out around the house or have their groceries delivered; it’s the same thing,” she told The Post. “Everyone has services in their life to make things easier and more efficient.”
“It’s not coddling and it’s not taking away independence,” Eckhardt said. In her view, the students are able to do their chores and simply lack the time to do them.
In St. Louis, “Mindy Knows” Has Grown To Eight Campuses
Mindy Horwitz founded the parent concierge service “Mindy Knows” for students at Washington University. What began as a solo effort has grown into a network of proxy mothers across eight campuses, including Penn State and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Horwitz got the idea when her oldest son enrolled at Washington University in 2018. As a St. Louis resident, she often answered questions in parent Facebook groups for out-of-town moms and became the go-to resource for families who lived far away.
She views her model as a “campus concierge service” rather than a parenting operation. She describes herself as a “regional navigator” who connects students with local physicians and trusted mechanics, gives restaurant recommendations and helps with package deliveries.
“Independence doesn’t mean being alone,” Horwitz told The Post. “Students need to become self-sufficient, to learn to do laundry, cook, and navigate life, but having support along the way is key.”
The Numbers Behind The Trend
These services are booming at a time when many students report struggling. UnitedHealthcare released data earlier this year showing that 69% of college students said they experienced a mental or behavioral health concern in the past year.
College students also reported higher overall incidences of those concerns than peers who are not enrolled in college. The Rent-A-Moms say they are there to ease stress for newcomers who are on their own for the first time.
If You Are Considering Extra Help For A College Student
Not every family needs a paid helper, and plenty of parents and grandparents handle care packages the old-fashioned way. Here are general ideas to weigh before you spend.
- Ask what the service includes. Packages in the story range from laundry and check-ins to dorm cleaning and dry-cleaning pickup.
- Agree up front on what the helper reports back. Eckhardt says she updates parents only on illnesses or emergencies.
- Try the cheaper route first. A birthday cupcake delivery, a gift box or a soup drop-off can be ordered one item at a time instead of by the semester.
- Keep the student in the loop. Independence, as Horwitz put it, means learning to do laundry and cook, with support nearby.
- Call often. A regular phone call costs nothing and tells you more than a selfie from a stranger.
Whatever you think of paying for a stand-in mom, the idea behind it is an old one. Kids who leave home still want to know someone is in their corner.
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