10 Popular Charities that Help Single Mothers

Living as an unmarried parent is difficult, especially for women. Don’t take my word for it; the stats say so: while 17.3% of white single-mother families lived below the poverty line in 2021 (Statista), only 9.6% of single-father families were poor during the same period (Statista). The numbers are even worse numerically, as nearly 80% of all single-parent families are single mothers.

To be clear, the statistics are nowhere near surprising, with the systemic discrimination against females in workplaces. Since men are more likely to earn more than women doing the same job, it’s only logical that men householders are generally financially better than their female counterparts.

While the solution to gender-based pay discrimination won’t come overnight, charities that help single mothers are working round the clock to pull single mothers out of the poverty line without needing to pass a pay equality bill through congress. If you’re a single mother trying to make ends meet, here are the popular charities that help single mothers in cash and kind to pull them out of poverty.

10 Popular Charities that Help Single Mothers

1. Mercy Housing

The largest expense for most Americans is housing, accounting for around 72% of the expenses of the average poor American. Single moms having to spend that much to keep a roof over the family’s heads explains why they descend so much into the poverty line. Charities that help single mothers with affordable housing are changing the narrative.

Today, Mercy Housing is one of the most popular charities that help single mothers keep a roof over their heads by making the cost of housing insanely affordable. Established in 1981, it has stayed true to its goal over the years, helping over 152,000 families access affordable housing in the country.

While the organization isn’t exclusive to single mothers, women make up 60% of its adult resident population, so it favors females. In addition to offering affordable housing, it helps women find gainful employment to pull them out of poverty and provide for their families better. Overall, Mercy Housing is one of the most popular ‘genuinely helpful’ charities that help single mothers.

2. Feeding America

Feeding America is one of the oldest charities on this list, and it’s unsurprisingly the largest hunger relief charity in the United States. The charity works by collecting excess food and channeling it to low-income families without sufficient food. Feeding America has been pretty successful at that, controlling over 200 food banks across the United States.

While Feeding America isn’t targeted specifically at single mothers, it services any American in need of food, which doesn’t exclude female householders. Most of Feeding America’s interventions are short-term, but showing proof of income and dependents may qualify you for long-term support.

Since it doesn’t target any specific demographic, you shouldn’t expect any useful networking or business opportunities, but it remains one of the most popular charities that help single mothers make ends meet.

3. Helping Hands for Single Moms

Helping Hands for Single Moms is a unique charity organization that helps single moms through college. The charity offers help in different ways, from full scholarships to textbook and software purchases, there’s a lot the average single mom can gain from Helping Hands for Single Moms.

Single mothers in college can turn to the non-profit for mentoring, professional and legal counseling, as well as emotional support. So far, they’ve helped several low-income single mothers achieve post-secondary education, positioning them as one of the most popular charities that help single mothers.

4. The Single Parent Project

Unlike most of the recommended charities in this compilation, the Single Parent Project doesn’t limit the scope of its support to single moms. However, it has several programs, some of which are only accessible to single females, making it one of the most popular charities that help single mothers.

Apart from regular emergency financial assistance, the project helps single parents go back to college by providing them with the emotional and financial support required to embark on the journey. It also has events for networking between single parents, making the charity organization every bit as fun as it is helpful.

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5. MAIA Moms

MAIA Moms is one of the most popular charities that help single mothers become self-sufficient. The organization’s vision is wider than that of most similar charities, as it uses a more holistic approach to empower single moms, giving them more than just financial and educational help.

The charity achieves its aims through group mentoring, life skills classes, and supportive transitional housing to ensure single moms aren’t living in substandard facilities for lack of resources. MAIA Moms aims to help single mothers gain higher education, as it’s an effective strategy for breaking the cycle of poverty.

It’s crucial to note that MAIA Moms doesn’t offer emergency assistance like utility assistance and food, but it does list a couple of charities that help single mothers in those aspects. At present, however, the charity offers life skills training, family advocacy programs, and rent subsidy for single moms pursuing higher education.

6. Cause We Care

While Cause We Care doesn’t focus too much on reaching out to single mothers and helping them out directly, they run one of the largest support funds to support charities that help single mothers, the Single Mothers Support Fund (SMSF).

They rely on a network of charities that recommend single mothers for support, screen the recommended applicants, and offer help on a case-by-case basis. Grants from SMSF can cover clothing, computer equipment, food, basic health costs, and transportation, among others.

You can find all the eligibility requirements on their website and how to apply for support from the charity organization. There’s also a donate page for good Samaritans willing to give back to the general public.

7. The Singletons

The Singletons isn’t like most other charities that help single mothers, as its mission is more niche. Instead, it helps single-parent families struggling with cancer, a necessary but often ignored subset of the general population.

The requirements for receiving help from The Singletons include signed documentation of the treatment plan, being single, and having at least one child under age 18 living in the home at least 50% of the time. From the information on the organization’s website, you can also receive support if your minor child is the one undergoing chemotherapy.

Once you fulfill all the requirements, you can head over to the online application form and enter your details correctly. If you qualify for help, The Singletons will call you with the next steps. Note that the nonprofit organization is only open to people living in Arizona.

8. Single Mothers Outreach

Single Mothers Outreach is another charity organization that focuses on providing hope, inspiration, and assistance to single mothers. They’re one of the few charities that help single mothers exclusively, so female householders have a pretty decent chance of getting it if they reach out to Single Mothers Outreach.

The organization helps single mothers in four ways. They connect with families to offer advice, support, and emergency help for those in need. Single Mothers Outreach also assists on a longer-term basis, provides training programs to help the families grow, and they inspire families with success stories of single mothers who eventually achieved success!

9. The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is one of the oldest charities that help single mothers, not only on this list but anywhere. Established in 1865, the church focuses on assisting people in crisis and families in extreme poverty.

Salvation Army operates food banks, financial assistance programs, and life coaching, among others. The Christian charity organization has a network of mentors that they connect to mentees to offer support during challenging times like examinations, pregnancy, etc.

For single mothers not financially buoyant enough to buy holiday gifts for their kids, The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program is the best solution for them. It connects participating children to good Samaritans willing to buy them gifts for the holidays, giving them an exciting holiday experience, regardless of the financial situation of the householder.

10. The Life of a Single Mom

The Life of a Single Mom, as the name implies, is a charity dedicated to ensuring no single mom has to go through it alone. Apart from finances, the group supports female householders with health and parenting education, helping them become better parents, even without a partner.

The organization facilitates the creation of single-mother support groups across the United States while improving those that have launched already. It also hosts social events for networking and outreach to reach as many single moms as possible.

Any single mom qualifies for help from The Life of a Single Mom, and you can apply through the organization’s official website. Clicking the “Get Help” button from the website should reveal tons of single mothers’ help resources to get started.

Bonus: You

None of these charities have an endless stream of money to spend; they rely on the donations of good people like you to be able to afford the help they render to single mothers. If you have more than enough to yourself, you may want to consider donating to any of the popular charities that help single mothers to help them grow.

Conclusion

With so many popular charities that help single mothers in the United States and beyond, there’s no reason for anyone to keep living below the poverty line without reaching out to one of them for help. If you’re well-to-do, most of these charities accept donations and your few dollars will go a long way for single moms.

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