A look at those in need: Part 1/The goal: End poverty in Saline County/Organization provides 'circles of support' to those who need help

from Marshall Democrat News

By Eric Crump/Staff writer

Editor's note: This is the first of three stories about those in need in Saline County.

The goal is ambitious: End poverty in Saline County.

The approach is simple: Provide those in poverty with a circle of support that will help them achieve their dreams.

In April, the Missouri Valley Community Action Agency hosted the launch of a new anti-poverty project, one designed to disrupt the conditions that keep people mired in poverty.

Saline County Circles gets its name from the "circles of support" concept promoted in the U.S. by the Move the Mountain Leadership Center. According to the center's Web site, Saline County Circles is one of three established circles projects in Missouri, with a fourth in the beginning stages. There are 44 established and emerging sites nationwide.

MVCAA's Community Leadership Coordinator Bill Nichols explained the idea during the first community meeting in July, noting that one thing that often distinguishes people who are living in poverty is the fact that they aren't well integrated into the community. The circles program seeks to remedy that.

"We need to work together as a community," Nichols said. "What we're doing is building a new community here."

The program invites people who are living in poverty -- which includes not just people without jobs but people with low-paying jobs who struggle and sometimes fail to make ends meet every month -- to take the initiative to escape the situations that prevent them from succeeding.

Those people are matched with several allies, members of the community who are more successful and can provide useful advice, help make connections and provide moral support as the participants seek to break the cycle of poverty.

There are two key requirements for participants, according to Nichols. They have to want to improve their lives and they have to be willing to reciprocate, to begin giving back to the community even as they are working to turn things around for themselves.

"There are a lot of services out there," he said. "But this approach is, you're getting something from the community so you give back to the community."

The program also seeks to maintain continuity by including weekly meetings as opportunities to provide participants with general information about the practical aspects of getting and staying out of poverty, helping them improve basic skills like managing a household budget, learning how to apply for home and auto loans, how to interact with government agencies and more.

State Rep. Joe Aull (D-Marshall) has been a guest speaker for the project, talking to the group about state government, and he said he's very impressed with the way things are going so far and is especially impressed with the participants who have come forward.

"It impresses me that these people are doing something to help themselves," he said. "They lean on each other. Nobody has all the answers, but they talk things through."

Marshall Mayor Connie Latimer is one of a number of community leaders who has been involved in the project since it began, serving on the planning committee that helped give the program its current shape. She, too, said she appreciates the emphasis on responsibility.

"It's not just a hand-out type of program," she said. "It gives people the tools they need. You can give people money to get out of debt but if you don't teach them how to stay out of debt you're soon back to square one."

Since July the group of participants and allies has slowly grown, according to Nichols. Organizers hope the early participants will help spread the word about the program and that the new year will see interest in it increase.

"It's making a difference for those who have sought it out," Latimer said.