Life and Career Resources for Single Working Mothers and Other Women in Need

If you are a single mother either gainfully employed or aspiring to reenter the work force, you know that the demands of daily life can be akin to scaling a mountain whose pinnacle seems well out of reach. Juggling the simultaneous and often incompatible needs of job or job search and family while stretching finances in a shaking economy, it can be easy for you to drop a ball.  To help you keep all those balls in those air, you will want to know about the broad range of resources available to assist you. The listing that follows is but a sampling of organizations that can provide tangible and no less valuable intangible support:

Catholic Charities.  If your circumstances correspond with established guidelines, you may be eligible to receive funding available to ensure that you and your child(ren) access the basic necessities via this not-for-profit, family-oriented social service organization.  The agency also offers direct services as well as referrals to other resources that you may wish to investigate, not limited to individual and family counseling.

Safe in Hunterdon.  Founded to assist victims of domestic violence, Safe in Hunterdon also serves as a hub for other, interrelated services available to help women leave abusive relationships, secure temporary housing, and transition into more fulfilling lives, including vocational training.

The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) and other teaching hospitals provide linkage to a vast network of counseling and other social service agencies, many of them available at no charge.  If you do not reside in the vicinity of the one or more of the larger healthcare institutions, know that smaller hospitals also employ and/or contract licensed clinical social workers.

Dress for Success.  Planning to reenter the work force or currently scheduling interviews and require the proper interview attire?  Dress for Success will provide you, free of charge, with a business suit and accessories.  The attire will have been previously worn by other women, but in good, “like new,” or sometimes even brand new condition, complete with hang tags!

Grooming.  To present yourself in your best professional light during an interview, you will wish to look your best.  Cosmetology schools and/or vocational institutions will provide you with minimal cost or free-of-charge services, such as hair styling, including cuts and coloring and make-up application.  As the schools offer these benefits on specific days of the week, at specific times, you will need to contact a school or schools closest to you to make an appointment.