For over eight years, Knights of Columbus Council 13300, Wildwood, Florida has been supporting H.O.M.E. with the collection of baby diapers, wipes, clothing and cash donations. The Knights undertake this collection twice a year, spring and fall. We just completed another successful spring event collecting over 13,000 disposable diapers, 26,000 baby wipes, over 200 pieces of baby clothing, baby food and supplies worth almost $8,000 and over $3,000 in cash donations.
So let’s take a deeper look into why this is such a valuable resource. H.O.M.E. is the acronym for “Hands of Mercy Everywhere”, a Christian home for expecting teenage girls, teen mothers and their babies, located in Belleview, Florida. There are three homes: “Faith House”, “Hope House” and the “Grace House;” where they provide a clean, organized, safe and spiritually driven environment in which teens have a chance to be teens and also have the support they need to be confident young mothers. At any given time, there are approximately 25 teens with their newborns.
H.O.M.E. believes every teen mom needs access to education and childcare. They also want pregnant or teen moms under their care to know they can have hopes and dreams for themselves and their children. Through guidance based on this structure, H.O.M.E is making an incredible lifelong impact on young lives.
Together with community support, H.O.M.E. strives to provide resources including education, parenting classes, life skills, career development, counseling and other means of evidenced-based programs and support as they lovingly transition them into adulthood. Every effort is made to provide the resources needed for the girls to carry their child to term and have a successful and comforting birth experience. They focus on preparing these young women for responsible parenthood through education on the importance of prenatal care, parenting skills and allowing for spiritual development and growth.
Our community is being blessed by H.O.M.E. and all they are doing – helping teen mother’s choose life, and build each new family into successful young mothers with unlimited futures.