By Andrea Dujardin-Flexhaug

SINGLE MOTHERS often need all the help they can get.

The Salvation Army in Kelowna is assisting them through the new Lone Parent Breakthrough (LPB) program.  

The objective is to offer support and guidance to single moms, by breaking through the isolation and barriers that are so often a part of their lives.

“I am very passionate about this program,” said  LPB coordinator Christine Reis, “because I believe there is a great need for women to have healthy supports and a sense of community.”

Applications are presently available for 10 women to take part in this pilot project. The program will be commencing in September.

It is an opportunity to provide single low income mothers in Kelowna with financial and literacy skills – as well as social connections to improve their own lives, and the lives of their children.

The Salvation Army began the $450,000 program after receiving just over half of that amount from the Women’s Community Fund of Status of Women Canada.

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One-on-one mentoring will be key, with each mother developing a growth plan that will be refined through workshops,  seminars, hands-on education and skill building.

“Over the period of one year, it is our hope and prayer that our participants will grow in their personal knowledge of body, mind and spirit,” said Reis.

The program will add an additional 10 women for each of the next two years.

LPB will be run out of the new Salvation Army Life Centre at 200 Rutland Road South, a former bowling alley which the organization has purchased and converted.

It also serves as an emergency food bank, thrift store and social service office.

“When we receive support from others, we then feel empowered to allow ourselves to look and examine the past, in order to develop a new life,” said Reis.

“That is my hope and prayer for the women in the program: to be able to gain strength by having a strong woman partner with them and encourage them, as they journey through life.”

For more information or to register, contact Christine Reis at 250.765.3450 ext 204.

June 2010