I'��d be so embarrassed if anyone saw these,�� said the 44-year-old of Austin, Texas, ��but when I am struggling, it reminds me of what I am working so hard for.��

Cuspard is a full-time student at Austin Community College, working toward a bachelor’s degree in nursing. To support herself and her 3-year-old son, Benton, she works the checkout at Walgreen's 20-30 hours a week.

Juggling the pressures of school and the demands of motherhood is not for the faint of heart. Cuspard is determined, but her resolve got a boost this fall when she was accepted into Jeremiah Program, an innovative effort to help low-income, single moms emerge from poverty.

Although education is the key to moving out of poverty, finishing a degree is more difficult — and expensive, especially considering the need for single mothers to have safe, affordable housing and quality childcare.

Participants of Jeremiah Program live in furnished units in an apartment building owned by the nonprofit as the program helps put them through college. Their children attend an onsite daycare. Meeting rooms in the building provide space for participants to meet with staff for life-skills classes, parenting advice and community gatherings.

��We try to give them the safety net that women from middle-class families have so they can finish school,” said Gloria Perez, president and CEO of Jeremiah Program. “If a woman from a well-off background becomes a single mother while she’s in college, she can move in with her parents, have family members watch her kids while she is at school. Our mom's don't have that kind of family support."

Read more at http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865592808/From-poverty-to-prosperity-How-the-Jeremiah-Program-helps-single-moms-reach-their-potential.html#UDJ1L5eTvrxJIORj.99



http://national.deseretnews.com/article/776/From-poverty-to-prosperity-How-the-Jeremiah-Program-helps-single-moms-reach-their-potential.html

fantastic!

right?!!

I meant it! i think this program is great!

Me Too, Its almost exactly what I would want to do if I were ever blessed with the means,,,,

Id want to mix it with programs in urban and inner city communities to help reinforce self respect and self esteem in young girls,,,

Legit Bootstrap programs can really change lives.

Often times it is possible for individuals to make a significant differances a young family's life.

Sometimes the efforts are simple. Offering babysitting either in evening hours or during holidays when the parents can often work around schooling.

Transportation for necessary trips such as shopping, medical appointments, church, or necessary appointments to sustain assistance.

Sometimes it is practical things like sharing laundry facilities, or hand me downs, garden surplus, or teaching a needed skill.

Sometimes it is just the encouragement of not being forgotten and feeling alone. There is little that is greater than the belief a person can instill in another that they can overcome by standing by and celebrating the little daily victory of surviving and thriving.

If each person on Mingle picked a pal and just did what they could it would be phenominal the way the world would get better.

lovely sentiments