Mothers Are Important At Covenant House
As we approach Mothers Day, we’d like to wish all of the mothers in and around our community a very Happy Mothers Day and celebrate them for the extraordinary work they do, day in and day out. Mothers hold a special place in our hearts here at CHNJ, thanks in part to our moms and babies program at Raphael’s Life House (RLH). RLH first opened its doors in 1993 and became aligned with CHNJ in 2003,
before becoming fully part of CHNJ in 2009. RLH can accommodate 12 mothers and their babies. Like the rest of CHNJ, RLH is so much more than “just” food and shelter. While at RLH, our new moms participate in a structure that promotes healthy parenting and equips them to support themselves and their children.
Vounteering
Part of that support is facilitated by wonderful volunteers like Carol Williams. Carol and her husband Bobby, have been longtime supporters of CHNJ in multiple ways. We’re so grateful to them for their support. As a mom herself, Carol has had a passion for supporting RLH.
I know that being a mom doesn’t always come naturally. I love that RLH volunteers help young women facing homelessness how to be better moms, by teaching them ways to care for their babies and themselves.
Carol Williams
Carol has been a wonderful long time volunteer at RLH working with young moms. She has assisted youth in one on one parental education at our Dove Learning Center to help those moms
- Enhance their parenting practices and behaviors
- Learn age appropriate child development skills and milestones and
- Promote positive play and interaction between parents and child
We have many volunteer opportunities at CHNJ involving youth at all of our sites. To learn more, click here.
Sleep Out
But her support has been provided in other equally important ways. Just last week, Carol was one of 227 participants in Sleep Out Women Unite held at MetLife Stadium and hosted by our terrific partner, the New York Giants. Via donations from friends and family, her passion for our work led Carol to give up her bed for just one night, to help raise funds and awareness for CHNJ and the youth facing homelessness we serve. Carol raised over $10,000 to support our work, part of over $440,000 raised that night! Thank you Carol and all the other women who made the Sleep Out a big success.
There were 227 good women who put their comfort aside to help homeless youth find a better path. I was inspired to be around so many strong courageous women. The kids from Covenant House grow up without community and adult support. Every child deserves to have at least one adult standing by him or her, and they find that support and unconditional love at Covenant House.
Carol Williams
So on this Mothers Day, we salute Carol Williams and all the other moms in the CHNJ community. But most especially, we salute all the moms past and present, who have journeyed through CHNJ and went on to raise wonderful families of their own.
