Java Hope creates economic opportunities for women leaving welfare under the new Michigan's new 5 year welfare term limits. This has deeply impacted single parent families. Each year we graduate over 100 women. Our candidates are qualified to work in the hospitality industry earning a living wage. Also each cart creates up to 5 additional jobs. Our goal is offering a 'hand-up', not a hand-out.
New Michigan legislation has imposed five year term limits on welfare. 46,000 people were cut off from welfare without a safety net. 29,700 children were greatly affected under this new policy. Many women receiving benefits lack quality job skills. They cannot provide for their families working minimum wage jobs. Their school children are receiving 3 free meals per day at school. As more women reach term and lose benefits, more families are at at-risk and the children suffer.
Our 2 year business program covers all phases of owning a coffee cart business. Women receive counseling and professional development training. Carts are placed in in busy downtown locations enabling the women to earn substantial wages as a worker during training and after as a business owner. they will teach their children and often they too become business owners. Ultimately, they become tax payers and not tax burdens. This is the goal of the Java Hope program.
Today, families are receiving smaller checks. The average payment before cuts was $552 per month. As of September 2012, payments dropped to $428 per month or over $5,000 per year! What can your investment of $25 or more do to help? It can help a woman set her pay grade. She only needs to make minimally $250 per day to earn a good living. Does your donation make a difference? You bet it does! Change a woman's life and change her family's world. Give a hands-up, not a hand-out!
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
