ABCCM Our Circle for Young Parents in Buncombe County

Maria Taylor (R) is a young parent, while Jerri Sorrells, as mentor, encourages her to reach her goals. Maria’s son Zyheim Ponder looks forward to this new match made possible by ABCCM’s Our Circle program.

Staff Reports

New friendships are happening in Buncombe County, thanks to the Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry’s Our Circle program.

Two such friends are 22-year-old Maria Taylor and somewhat older Jerri Sorrells.

“This is an opportunity for us to expand our horizons out there,” says Taylor, who is the mother of 19-month old Zyheim Ponder.

Based on the national Circles program, the ABCCM Our Circle program is designed to build understanding across socio-economic and racial lines, helping reduce poverty while strengthening community. This successful program in Buncombe County is currently focusing on helping young parents with children.

“This gives me a chance to give back to the community, just as I was helped by it,” Sorrells notes. “Lots of people have really helped me, and Maria’s going to help someone. It’s important that we do what we can for young people.”

Taylor adds, “It’s all like a big circle.” Both laugh when they realize that’s the name of the program that brought them together.

In this Circle match, Taylor, as the young parent, is the leader who sets her own goals, while Sorrells encourages her as her ally (or friend) to reach her goals. Taylor’s aspirations include a degree in criminal justice or social work and making a good life for her son.

Both women have been trained in their respective roles through an eight-week course, and both are now part of a new community of other leaders and allies. As part of the first classes to go through the trainings and be matched, they are building a trusting relationship across economic, racial, and generational lines.

Our Circle coach Sara Varnado says, “In order to envision a more peaceful world, we must first learn to accept others for who they are and learn how to focus on similarities rather than differences. This program allows people from a variety of backgrounds to learn from each other, share experiences, and build supportive friendships.”

The goal is to pair caring individuals from the community, allies as friends with Circle leaders (the young parents), in order to build new friendships across economic, class, and racial lines, strengthening the community and erasing poverty.

Parent participants (mothers, fathers, or both, who have custody of their children) are ages 16-24 and living at or below 200 percent of the poverty level. The program goal is to help the parents further their education and training in order to get better-paying jobs. The hope is that with further education and help from the ABCCM Our Circle staff, allies, and the Asheville-Buncombe community, they will then be able to better provide for their families without having to rely on public assistance.

Allies are vital by acting as friends and, more importantly, support systems for the parents. There is no expectation that they there to “fix” problems, act as social workers, or provide monetary assistance; rather, they support the parents by offering friendship, encouragement, prayer, and any networking opportunities that arise.

Learn more about Our Circle at www.abccm.org/ministries/circles, or request a staff visit to your church or civic group for more details about this program.

For more information, call (828) 259-5310, e-mail [email protected] , or visit the program’s offices at 207 Coxe Avenue in downtown Asheville.