Financial Assistance for Single Mothers

There are lots of programs out there that will provide financial assistance for single mothers.

Some of these programs include organizations such as:

  • Help a Mother Out
  • HOPE, Inc.
  • Single Parent Project
  • Insure Kids Now
  • Child Care Tax Credit
  • Head Start
  • Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
  • Medicaid
  • Medicare
  • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
  • The Emergency Food Assistance Program
  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
  • Summer Food Service Program
  • National School Lunch Program
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children
  • Farmers Market Nutrition Program
  • Helping Hands for Single Moms

In addition to these resources, there are also lots of religious charities that operate in your area that will help you with the direct or indirect financial assistance that you need to make ends meet.

Help a Mother Out

Help a Mother Out is a nonprofit group that helps to provide diapers to families who need them. They believe that if every child has access to clean diapers, this improves the health and comfort of babies, as well as reducing the risk of serious disease outbreaks. This also allows children to participate in early child care and education programs.

Help a Mother Out primarily operates in Northern California, with their main headquarters located in San Francisco.

HOPE, Inc.

HOPE, Inc. is on a mission to empower single mothers by making them more self-sufficient. They are operating in the greater Atlanta area, and they offer services such as child care assistance, rent relief, and life skills training.

They believe that the best way to break the cycle of poverty is to help everyone access the education that they deserve. The financial assistance they provide helps single mothers achieve this education.

Single Parent Project

The Single Parent Project does more than just provide assistance to single mothers and other parents who need assistance. They are on a mission to keep single parents on the right path in life.

Insure Kids Now

Insure Kids Now is a program that helps children and teenagers receive health insurance at a low cost. Parents are also able to receive aid through this program.

This relief is provided through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Single parents have to be able to prove that they are not able to afford health insurance before they are able to get covered through Insure Kids Now.

Child Care Tax Credit

This is a tax credit that lets parents deduct the funds that they spend on child care from their taxable income. Child care is expensive, so this is a resource that can help provide parents with a lot of help when tax season rolls around.

Head Start

Head Start is a program that provides free preschool education to children who are under the age of five. A lot of Head Start programs also offer Early Head Start support to infants, pregnant women, as well as toddlers.

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program is a resource that single mothers can use to earn energy grants as long as they qualify for particular eligibility criteria. This program gives funds that cover important costs like home energy bills, as well as home repairs related to energy related issues.

Medicaid

Medicaid is a collection of state sponsored programs that help low income families get the medical assistance that they need. The eligibility requirements for getting assistance from Medicaid vary from state to state, so you will have to check the specific guidelines for the state that you live in.

Medicare

Normally Medicare is only available to people who are over the age of 65. However, there are certain circumstances where people under the age of 65 are eligible for getting help from this program.

If you are a single mother looking for financial assistance, you can use the Medicare Eligibility Checker Tool to determine if you qualify for relief with your medical bills.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

TANF is a program that helps needy families become more self-sufficient by giving them grants and other financial support. Families have to show that they are eligible for this program by taking specific steps that are outlined in the online application form.

The Emergency Food Assistance Program

Low income single mothers and other parents can get help through the Emergency Food Assistance Program in the form of food assistance. The family’s household income cannot exceed the federal guidelines established by the United States Department of Agriculture.

This is one of the best resources that is available to single mothers who are looking for financial assistance.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also called SNAP, uses a debit card system to deliver benefits to recipients. Participants in this program are given a benefits card that they can use at grocery stores and retail outlets that accept SNAP to purchase nutritional food.

Summer Food Service Program

The Summer Food Service Program is a way that low income families can continue eating healthy meals, even during the summer when school is not in session. This program helps to feed hundreds of millions of children across the country every single year.

National School Lunch Program

The National School Lunch Program gives free or low cost meals to children who otherwise cannot afford them. Single mothers and other parents can apply to join this program at any time during the school year, but applications are handed out to all children at the beginning of the school year.

Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children

This is another nutritional program that is run by the United States Department of Agriculture. Eligibility to participate in this program is limited to low income single mothers and/or their children.

To join this program a single mother must be breastfeeding, pregnant, or postpartum. The children of low income single mothers are eligible for participation in this program until they are five years old.

Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit organization that helps single mothers who are trying to build their first home for themselves and their families. There is a group of volunteers who will help you build your home, on the condition that you help them with the construction and buy furniture from the organization’s stores.

Farmers Market Nutrition Program

Congress created the Farmers Market Nutrition Program all the way back in 1992 so that people who are eligible for WIC aid can also get a monthly voucher to buy fresh produce. You can buy this fresh produce directly from your local farmers market, local farmers, or even from roadside produce stands in your town.

Helping Hands for Single Moms

Helping Hands for Single Moms is an organization that provides aid to low income single mothers who are trying to earn their college degree. The program provides various benefits to single mothers that include vehicle repairs, emergency funds, as well as legal counsel in addition to college financial aid.

This program operates out of Dallas, Texas and Phoenix, Arizona.

Charities That Provide Financial Assistance for Single Moms

In addition to these grants and organizations that help single mothers with financial assistance, there are also religious based charities that you can turn to for help. Some of the more prominent ones include the following.

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church

This is another Christian organization that offers help to single mothers and their families. There are many services that this organization offers that improves the quality of life for these families.

Some of these services include rental assistance for families facing eviction, help with utility bills, household items, and clothing drives. They also offer transportation assistance in the form of gas vouchers and bus fares, along with Christmas and Thanksgiving meal help.

Catholic Charities

Catholic Charities is a group of religious charity organizations that provide important services to families who are struggling to care for each other. Some of these programs include providing single mothers with financial assistance as well as social support services.

Some of these services include things like helping with bills, food banks, parenting classes, groceries, as well as guidance for pregnant teenagers who want to keep their children or give them up for adoption, along with other services.

Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is a charity that sometimes provides safe shelter for single mothers and their families. These are transitional living centers that also offer life support services like education, counseling, food, vocational education, as well as other programs.

They also are famous for sponsoring an annual Christmas toy drive every year, and they are on a mission to help families become more stable.

Final Thoughts

If you are a single mother who is struggling financially, there are lots of options that you can turn to for assistance. Some of these options include federal and state grants and aid programs.

Other options include community action and volunteer groups. There are even religious charities in your area that will help provide you with the direct or indirect assistance that you need in order to get back on your feet and become self-sufficient.

Learn more about Grants and Government Assistance Programs for Single Mothers.