MOTHERS REFUGE
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : A****a@M***********e.o*g
Mission Statement
Mothers Refuge mission is to shelter and educate homeless pregnant and parenting young women by providing comprehensive services that empower them to make successful life decisions for themselves and their babies.
About This Cause
Mother’s Refuge provides shelter, education, and wrap-around support for young moms and their children. Our case managers work with the young mothers in both our maternity home and Transitional Living Program to develop a customized treatment plan and achieve their goals. Staff provide guidance and support with navigating life, such as scheduling medical appointments and understanding insurance, legal cases, and making other social service referrals. Our licensed in-house therapist provides evidenced-based therapy to help moms build self-awareness, heal from trauma, and develop healthy coping skills. We provide life skills training to promote their economic, social, and personal development. The young women who come to Mother’s Refuge have faced many injustices including physical, mental, emotional, and/or sexual abuse. Homelessness does not only affect the mother, but housing instability in early childhood can have lifelong consequences. These children are nine times more likely to live in poverty and are at higher risk for illnesses, learning disabilities, and homelessness. With the lack of care and structure during key developmental times in their life, residents lack the basic life-skills that many within mainstream society take for granted. They do not know how to do laundry, prepare a meal, or maintain proper hygiene. With staff coaching, residents learn to complete daily activities necessary for the functioning of a family such as preparing meals, cleaning the house, and doing laundry. Our Transitional Living Program (TLP) serves as an extension of the maternity shelter services we have provided for over 36 years and allows us to provide support during a critical time in a child’s life, from 0-5 years of age. The program imparts independence and fosters self-sufficiency to improve mental health, development, attachment, and well-being of children. We have six two-bedroom apartment units and one 3-bedroom home for the TLP. In December of 2022, we purchased a property in downtown Independence which will be renovated into 12 independent TLP apartments, offices, storage, and a community gathering space. While at Mother’s Refuge shelter, pregnant and parenting young women learn the skills necessary to take the next steps into independent living, but often they lack support systems to truly get back on their own feet. For example, one of our first TLP residents had made considerable strides at our maternity shelter, but still had debt to pay and bad credit, keeping her from being able to find an affordable and safe environment for her and her baby. Thanks to the TLP, she was able to pay debt, save money, and build her credit. While in the TLP, residents are required to work at least 30 hours per week and pay 30% of income as rent. When they graduate from the program, residents are given all their “rent” money back as savings. The TLP provides the stability and freedom they need to practice independent living skills while still receiving education, shelter, and a safety-net of support through Mother’s Refuge. After Mother’s Refuge, all clients are enrolled into our Aftercare Program where they can continue to receive parenting and self-improvement education, physical and emotional support, and other resources to help them maintain their independence.