Late in 2018, members of the Wheeling, West Virginia, church decided to sponsor an outreach program for the single mothers in the area. This outreach was a bimonthly meeting support program. To spread the word, we contacted the local government and outreach organizations and used the connections to distribute handouts.

In our community, the following statistics helped us realize how needed this program was.

• One third of single moms live in poverty.
• Even though single moms are some of the hardest-working, most dedicated mothers in the country, sadly, 78 percent of the current prison population was raised by single moms.
• Children of single-parent homes are five times more likely to commit suicide and 10 times more likely to drop out of high school.
• Seventy-five percent of all government assistance goes to single-parent households.
• Children in single-parent households are twice as likely to suffer abuse.
• Only 1 percent of the country’s 300,000 evangelical churches has a sustainable single-parent program.
• Two thirds of single moms do not attend church.

Sometimes, when we feel that we are called to minister in a certain manner, our Lord has other ideas. We started a group, but our efforts were not successful. We turned to prayer and soul-searching to figure out what to do next. I was impressed to cling to Proverbs 3:5, 6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

We set up a single moms’ support program on Facebook, with messaging and a phone number available. Meeting attendance was very discouraging, but the contacts made through Messenger and telephone developed into a very active support ministry, with calls intensifying during the holiday season. These young women had issues on their hearts: coparenting, the fathers of their children, current boyfriends, financial challenges—issues that placed extreme stress on them. Often they do not have the life experience or reliable support systems to help them through, and we found it was easier for them to communicate online or on a telephone.

It has been a blessing to provide a “shoulder to lean on” for these many lonely women. Only God knows what the result will be from these contacts, but it is an honor to be His servant to these women.

Naomi McKey-Tricomi attends the Wheeling, West Virginia, Seventh-day Adventist Church.