The Single Mom Project, founded and spearheaded by Janet Jones and her two sons, Carter and Evan, has been supporting Richstone Family Center for over 5 years and changed the lives of many families. Janet became a single mother when her sons were in elementary school and learned quickly that being a single parent is difficult, especially when finances are tight. After receiving a generous gift from a friend at the end of his life, Janet decided that she was going to make it her purpose to pay it forward to other single parent families that face similar struggles.
In 2020, Janet and her sons, Evan and Carter, decided that they were going to give back to others by providing single mothers at the Richstone Family Center with grants to support their families. The Jones family reached out to their friends and family and raised nearly $10,000 in their first year. This was enough to honor 20 families.
Since that first year, the Single Mom Project has provided $1,000 grants to RFC clients in conjunction with Mother’s Day every year. These funds support families’ rent, groceries, and other necessities that are often difficult for single-parent households. All children and parents deserve to be safe, happy, and healthy, and the Single Mom Project helps make this possible when facing the reality of single parenthood.
We spoke with Janet about what the Single Mom Project means to her and what impact she hopes to have.
Q: What has been the most impactful moment or memory you have of the Single Mom Project?
A: The most impactful memory came when we received an almost instant “go-ahead” in 2020 from Allison Tanaka, the Director of Development, when we presented the idea of presenting grants to help single-parents get on steadier financial footing. Allison saw the value in what we wanted to do. Her encouragement spurred us on to dive headfirst into fundraising to make the Single Mom Project happen. We’ve distributed nearly $200,000 in grants to Richstone clients.
Q: What do you hope is the legacy of your generosity with the Single Mom Project?
A: We hope we’ve given confidence to Richstone’s clients and inspired them to be the best parents they can possibly be. When children watch their mothers feel more confident, they tend to stand up taller, too. Single parenting can be tough stuff, so it’s our hope that the Single Mom Project has made hundreds of parents feel seen in a world that often makes them feel overlooked or even invisible.
Q: What does it mean to have created and continued to run the Single Mom Project with your sons?
A: My sons and I could never have imagined how much it would glue us together as a family. It’s remarkable to realize that our simple idea to give a financial boost to deserving mothers has turned into so many success stories for Richstone’s clients. We have tremendous respect for the moms we’ve met. They’ve spurred us on to keep fundraising so we can help as many parents and their children as possible in the years ahead.
Q: How do you hope Single Mom Project can continue to evolve ?
A: My sons and I often talk about the unending need single parents have to make ends meet. It can be daunting. As the Single Mom Project moves forward, we hope to increase our fundraising in order to give out as many grants every May as we can. Most of all, we want our honorees to know that we wholeheartedly believe in them and will continue to support their families.
Janet and her sons have shown incredible generosity to the Richstone Family Center community, and they have had an immense impact. Their story is a reminder that empathy and kindness can come from hardship – and that empathy and kindness are best when shared with those who need it most.
Read more about Single Mom Project and the Jones family at singlemomproject.org
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