Group helps single moms attain self-reliance

One nonprofit agency in the Salt Lake Valley has been working hard for more than seven years helping thousands of single moms connect with resources within the community.

Established in Utah in 1998, the Single Mom Foundation empowers single moms in Utah to become self-reliant and strengthen personal resiliency enhancing their ability to create stable and nurturing environments for themselves and their children.

Through the foundation, Diana Thomas, executive director, and Colleen Grover, client and volunteer coordinator, are working hard at providing single moms with the resources available to them in the state.

"Our belief is that through the fulfillment of this mission, the Single Mom Foundation strengthens single moms, their children and the communities in which they live," Thomas said.

The foundation's roots stem from a former locally formed and operated business, the Greenbacks Corp.

Brent Bishop, former owner of Greenbacks, had a soft spot for single moms because he has helped them become self-reliant in the past. Looking for a way for his corporation to give back to the community, he contacted Karen Mecham, a single mom he helped get an education, to head up the new foundation. They named it Bringing Hope to Single Moms, Thomas explained.

More than two years ago, Bishop sold Greenbacks to the Dollar Tree Corp., but the foundation continued on. The foundation is no longer affiliated with either organization. However, Bishop still serves as a board member of the foundation and Mecham continues to volunteer, Thomas said, noting later the foundation went though a name change and broadened its focus.

One focus of the foundation is to do research on the number of single moms in Utah to determine what the need is in the state. According to the 2000 Census, there are more than 44,000 single moms in Utah and more than 12 million nationwide, Grover said.

Thomas said she believes the number from the 2000 Census is "very conservative. I believe the number is closer to 60,000 (in Utah)," she noted, adding that is why more research needs to be done.

The foundation's main focus is to partner with other community organizations so they do not duplicate services, and then let single moms know about the programs and resources within the community. The foundation does this by holding monthly seminars and workshops, and an annual conference to provide education and networking opportunities with community organizations and other single moms, Grover noted.