Media

Bridge of Hope in the News

• Benefiting Others (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.:  Nov 6, 2009)
• Bridge of Hope Plans to Help Homeless Moms (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.: Oct 27, 2009)
• Auction Planned for Mentoring Program (Today’s Catholic, 10/18/2009, p.8)
• Bridge of Hope St. Joseph Country to Sponsor “A Night with Paul A. Wright M.D.” (Today’s Catholic, 03/27/2009, p.7)
• Mentoring Single Moms is Mission. (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.:Jun 13, 2008.  p. E.1 )

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Benefiting Others (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.: Nov 6, 2009, Page D8)

The St. Joseph County Chapter of Bridge of Hope raised more than $25,000 at a fundraiser Oct. 30 as it moves into the active ministry phase of its mission.

Bridge of Hope partners a single mother and her children with a professionally trained mentoring group from a local Christian church. The goal is to achieve permanent housing and financial self-sufficiency for the mother.

More than 110 participants gathered at the fundraiser, with the Sergio Corp., First Response, Goodwill Industries, Indiana Trust and Investment Management Co., Warner Jones and Co. and Executive Recruiting Partners participating as well.

For more information about the nonprofit organization, go to www.bridgeofhopesjc.com.

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Bridge of Hope Plans to Help Homeless Moms (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.: Oct 27, 2009)

(Also at: http://www.allbusiness.com/society-social/philanthropy-fundraising/13351570-1.html)

Bridge of Hope plans to empower homeless and at-risk single mothers.

But first, the nonprofit organization needs to hire its first paid staff member, a program director.  To raise money to that end, its board will hold a live and silent auction Friday night with a variety of attractive items.

“We’re still a fledgling organization, but we’ve been meeting as a board for a year,” said board member Norma Jean Neff.   “It’s been a slow process. We’ve slowly jumped through the hoops to be viable and now we’re at the point that we need to hire a program director.”  And that person needs to be paid, she added.

The auction is at 6 p.m. Friday at Waterford Estates Lodge, 52890 Indiana 933. Tickets are $35, and hors d’oeuvres will be served.
Neff said the group is hoping to raise $10,000 of the $40,000 it needs to hire the program director. The group plans to have other fundraisers throughout the year.

The program director, Neff explained, will train mentors for the program.  Each homeless single mother who enters the Bridge of Hope of Saint Joseph County program works with eight mentors.  The mentors will walk by her side and help to place her in permanent employment and housing.  Once it’s up and running, the program will match women with churches, which supply the mentors. Each woman makes a commitment to the program and her mentors for 18 months.

And those mentors need training, said Neff, who along with Michael Druley was co-founder of the local chapter of Bridge of Hope.  “The program hinges on having mentors,” she added.
While Neff said the group doesn’t believe it can help all women, it does believe that women who are experiencing transitional poverty will benefit most.

Organization leaders have a “vision of ending homelessness for single mothers and their children by equipping local churches in the ministry of friendship,” Neff said.  She said they want to help homeless single mothers achieve permanent housing, financial self-sufficiency and growth.

Druley is chairing the auction. Bridge of Hope volunteers have collected items including:

For information, contact Bridge of Hope at (574) 679-4238.

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Mary Morgan and Mike Druley, Board and Event Chairs

Auction Planned for Mentoring Program (Today’s Catholic, 10/18/2009, p.8)

Bridge of Hope Chairman Mary Morgan and Vice Chairman Michael Druley announce that the organization will celebrate its first birthday by holding a silent/live auction at Waterford Estates Lodge in South Bend on Oct. 30, 2009.

Bridge of Hope brings together professionals and church-based mentoring groups to empower homeless and at risk single mothers to attain permanent housing, financial self sufficiency, friendships, growth and wellness.

Make reservations to (574) 679-4238 or e-mail mary@bridgeofhopesjc.com.

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Bridge of Hope-St. Joseph County to sponsor “A Night with Paul A. Wright M.D.” (Today’s Catholic, 03/27/2009, p.7)
GRANGER — The St. Joseph Chapter of Bridge of Hope will offer “A Night with Paul A. Wright, M.D.,” at St. Pius X Parish in Granger on March 27 at 6:30 p.m.

Wright, noted author and Mother Teresa’s personal cardiologist, will speak on his time with Mother Teresa and her prescription for finding happiness and peace in service. The event begins with a light supper followed by Wright’s presentation and keynote speakers until 8 p.m. The presentation will be followed by a question-and-answer session and book signing.

A Night with Paul A. Wright, M.D. will help to provide the Christian Community of Michiana with an opportunity to be truly inspired by Christian service and find opportunity to apply this inspiration to the service of the needy women and children of St. Joseph County.

A native of Steubenville, Ohio, and alumnus of University of Notre Dame, Wright founded the Poorest of the Poor, a program that provides food, clothing and supplies to the needy of the U.S. and internationally. He also founded the Medical Mission Program,  which supplies the needy of Northeastern Ohio with free prescription drugs.

Since 1989, Bridge of Hope has been successfully assisting homeless mothers and their children to secure permanent housing and attain financial self-sufficiency.  In a proven program, 80-85 percent of the single mothers in Bridge of Hope graduate with permanent housing, a circle of supportive mentors and a long-term
plan for financial self-sufficiency through employment.

Each homeless family is paired with a church-based mentoring group that provides ongoing social, emotional and spiritual support.   While working with Bridge of Hope staff, women learn the life skills necessary to set and achieve short and long term goals, responsible financial planning, parenting skills and education for future security.

To reserve a seat or for more information, call (574) 679-4238 or (574) 247-0650.

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Mentoring Single Moms is Mission. (South Bend Tribune.  South Bend, Ind.:Jun 13, 2008.  p. E.1 )

SOUTH BEND – Here’s the problem: Single mothers of young children often have no one to turn to when they need child care, money for rent, or job training as well as emotional support.

They get further off the path to self-sufficiency when they turn to alcohol or drugs for some escape from their sense of hopelessness.

But a group of people representing different faiths thinks there is hope. They are working to form a local affiliate of Bridge of Hope, a church-based mentoring program to empower young single moms.

“It’s all about taking out the roadblocks that make it difficult for a young mother to get on the right path,” said Denise Blanche, a member of the startup committee that has been meeting monthly since last fall. “Roadblocks like day care, if she can’t afford it.”

“People who live in poverty often just don’t have the support they need from parents and friends,” she added. “The only contacts they have are other poor people, so they get on this merry-go-round.”

The single mothers who sign on with Bridge of Hope must commit to an 18-month partnership with the agency and a mentoring church group. They must agree to remain alcohol- and drug-free.

The church group that mentors her is not responsible for direct aid — meaning her rent bill, or day-care payments or job training fees. Resources already exist in the community to help with those bills, and there would be some networking to access those resources. Plus, a local affiliate might also raise its own funds to help with direct assistance. The primary role of the mentoring church group is to provide friendship and emotional support. Bridge of Hope staff would also steer her in the right direction by helping her devise a workable plan toward self-sufficiency.

Mike Druley, chairperson of the start-up committee, said a group of about 30 people, all from different churches, both Protestant and Catholic, gathered last September for an initial meeting at Kern Road Mennonite Church to discuss the possibility of starting a local affiliate.

He said Norma Jean Neff, of South Bend, got the project moving when she invited her sister, Nancy Sauder, of Lancaster County, Pa., to share with the local group the success of the Lancaster-Chester County (Pa.) affiliate of Bridge of Hope.

“That got it started,” Druley said. “Norma was encouraged by her sister’s story and got a number of us together.”

Then, a month later, a larger group of about 60 people attended a presentation by a representative of the national organization, based in Exton, Pa.

Bridge of Hope is very ecumenical.

Churches represented on the start-up committee include Kern Road Mennonite Church, St. Matthew Cathedral, Queen of Peace Catholic Church and Little Flower Catholic Church.

Churches with members who have made financial donations include Christ the King Catholic, Gospel Center Missionary Church, Prince of Peace Brethren Church and Trinity Evangelical Free Church.

People from the following churches have also expressed an interest in getting involved in some other way: Corpus Christi Catholic Church, St. Pius X Catholic Church, Bethel Missionary Church, St. Jude Catholic Church, St. Augustine Catholic Church and Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

The start-up committee has been meeting for the past six months, getting ready for a local affiliate launch.

A needs assessment was conducted to ensure that the affiliate won’t be duplicating efforts of an existing agency here.

Most of the $2,500 seed money required for the start-up has been raised, said Druley, who operates his own executive research firm. The next step will be formal application to the national organization. A board of directors must be named, as well as an executive director who will have fundraising duties.

Druley says he became interested in the organization when he saw its focus on helping single moms one at a time.

“I’ve always believed you can make a change, one person at a time. We often look at problems like this that affect so many people and think that we can’t make a difference.

“But God takes your effort, and magnifies it. So by helping one person, you are helping many.”

Blanche likes the idea of working with a single mom for an extended period of time and helping her to meet specific goals.

“I’m excited about it because it’s more of a beginning-to-end thing,” she said. “You see a young woman through the whole process, instead of just taking care of one need and then sending her on her way.”

For more information, or to get involved, contact Norma Jean Neff, the Bridge of Hope communications chairperson, at (574) 291-3327 or by e-mail at nj.larry@sbcglobal.net

(Copyright (c) 2008 South Bend Tribune. All rights reserved.)