A support home is a private family home where a woman, age 18 or older, can stay during her pregnancy and for up to 4 to 6 weeks after the birth of her child.
If a woman is interested in a support home, she will fill out a questionnaire, be interviewed by one staff member and one (MWC) board member. A decision will be made within 48 hours as to your eligibility. Placement in a home will occur as soon after that as possible (it can take up to 2 weeks). Being approved for a support home does not guarantee placement in a home, as availability of support homes is limited.
The basic areas focused on in a shepherding home will be:
A woman staying in a support home will be required to meet with a representative from Metro Women's Center bi-weekly to discuss progress and to make plans for future personal, spiritual and decision-making growth. The support home serves as a platform from which the woman can improve her life.
Question: Why do families choose to open their homes in this way?
Answer: The support home ministry is a way to demonstrate a family's support for life. They are concerned about abortion, about the well-being of pregnant women and about the well-being of her baby. The family can provide a woman who lives in their ome during her pregnancy with good role models of healthy family life and marriage.
Question: Will the woman have a room of her own?
Answer: Yes, but you may be sharing the bathroom and common areas with with other family members.
Question: Will the woman be expected to pay room and board?
Answer: Yes, but the amount is minimal and no one is turned away because of an inability to pay. The expectation is that a woman will be working full-time or going to school and working part-time. If a woman has some income coming in, arrangements can be made to help her work on budgeting her funds. Most support families place the funds provided by the woman into a separate account which can be used by the woman when she leaves the home for rent or a security deposit on a new residence.
Question: Will the woman be expected to help in the home?
Answer: A woman is expected to maintain her own room, do her own laundry and assist with meals. In general, she is expected to "pitch in" like a member of the family, not be treated as a guest. There are certain expectations that the host family will have of the woman based on individual family standards. (A list of general house riles will be made available to a woman prior to her moving in). We will discuss them with her and the family during a pre-placement visit to the home with MWC staff.
Question: Will the woman be included in family activities?
Answer: Yes. The host family will be happy to include the woman as part of their family activities as schedules allow and as is reasonable. We encourage women to plan to participate in family life, including church attendance, at least once per week as a way to grow in their relationship with the support home family.