Our Mission
We assist families in developing their own future story and then work to support them in meeting their goals. We also take what we are learning from their experiences to build a more effective path out of poverty.
The Support Circles Model
The Support Circles Model
We believe that together we can do so much more! Poverty is a community problem and it requires community solutions. The best way to understand the problems AND the potential solutions is to hear from the families living in poverty. This is not a "do for" program - this is a "be with" and "do with" community engagement initiative. Notice in our model, the center is the family. We firmly believe, that with time and space, families are incredibly capable of making effective changes. Allies, who walk along side of families, experiencing parts of the journey with them, can join us in effecting systemic and community change. Together we build a path out of poverty that others can follow!
1 Family
Who wants out of poverty
People come to Circles wanting a better future for their family. They may not know how to make it happen but they are willing to work hard to achieve it. We spend a great deal of time up front creating a safe place where families can create a future story, do an assemessment on what it will take to get there and then set their own goals.
2 - 4 Allies
committed volunteers who will walk along side the family
Once a family has created their own future story we match them with 3 to 4 Allies , community volunteers who will walk along side the family. This is about being, not doing. About sharing, helping someone process new information and providing emotional support. It is also about getting a better understanding of the barriers that keep people in poverty.
A Community of Support
who are committed to making community and system sypport
Circles is about helping families on the micro level and on creating community solutions and changing systems on the macro level. It is about taking what we are learning,, and then as a Circles Community doing something with what families are experiencing so that we can create a path out of poverty for all families.