Background

I.C. White Stone will be celebrating our 4th year of service to single mothers and their children (single families) in July 07. What began from one single mother’s journey to rebuild her family and fit into her new neighborhood after a divorce has develop into a important mother/child-centered/ neighborhood organization that offers faith, hope, healing, community service and higher educational opportunities for personal growth through a system of accountability.

Over 50% of all marriages fail and end in divorce here in the United States (majority white women), now add to that number the amount of never married single mothers (majority black women). I.C.White Stone looks to work with neighborhood associations to identify the single families who would benefit from a network that encourages everyone to reach higher, be accountable for their children and to be more involved in the community.

The Federal Office of Child Support in the Preliminary Statistics for 2002 reports that 1.61 billion is due to 487,333 children in Tennessee. A lack of child support is felt in every community in issues such as, absentee fathers, poverty, and juvenile crime.

These issues can also be linked to kids being left home alone because mom has to work odd jobs, odd hours, or a second job. And even if she works to support her family, according to the Tennessee Economic Council on Women, Tennessee is compounding the problem. Women earn less than men in 99% of all occupations by an average of $8,108. Only 14% of Tennessee women have a college degree and it ranks 50th in the nation in the overall status of women.

Most residents agree that the family is the main building block of society. In 2002, Tennessee ranked 4th in the nation for divorce. One income changes the way a woman is able to rear her family and children growing up in single parent households are more likely to be poor, to have health problems, to drop out of school, to be teen parents, and to be involved with criminal activity. These truths hold very true in our East Nashville neighborhood. I.C.White Stone seeks to attack this problem by sharing with single families exactly what successful single mothers have done. The key is to treat other families the way you treat yours.

Currently, efforts are focused through three primary programs: Single Mothers Network (neighborhood mothers are identified, listed, and compiled into a list where each becomes the others go to for help and resources), Vice Chancellors Council / VC – YC (youth from single families take an active role in addressing educational and community issues directly related to them, especially those hindering college entrance and graduation), Gems and Gemstones (younger youth are taught altruism and the importance of giving back through volunteering. Education and literacy is stressed and youth put together service projects on topics of their interest. This program is a pre-requisite to the Vice Chancellors Youth Council.