Boston Bridge Project to Provide Families Living in Poverty With Direct Cash
An innovative new project aims to uplift single mothers and their children who are living in poverty in Boston. According to The Boston Globe, 250 struggling parents-to-be and their babies…
Stock Photo
An innovative new project aims to uplift single mothers and their children who are living in poverty in Boston.
According to The Boston Globe, 250 struggling parents-to-be and their babies would be positively impacted by The Bridge Project. Applications opened on Wednesday, June 4, for residents of the city who are older than 18, are 23 weeks pregnant or less, and have an annual household income of less than $44,000.
Recipients, who will be chosen through a rolling lottery, will receive a one-time stipend of $1,125, followed by $750 per month for the first 15 months and $375 each month for 21 months. The program's goal is that, by the end of 21 months, the extra cash will have given these individuals a means — a bridge — to stability.
Philanthropists have stepped up to “lean in with a little bit more courageous generosity to do something very tangible,” said Emily Nielsen Jones, whose family foundation contributed to the fund. “There is so much momentum. It has felt contagious, which we hope continues.”
Preliminary results from early tests of The Bridge Project in other areas of the country have been promising. Holly Fogle, a former consultant for McKinsey, started a family foundation that gave a group of 100 mothers $1,000 per month. A preliminary study by the Center for Guaranteed Income at the University of Pennsylvania revealed that the women put the money to good use by expanding their savings, using the funds to pay for child care, stabilizing their housing situation, and providing food for their families.
For Briana Drummer, 33, the funds she received from The Bridge Project helped her graduate from college, secure an apartment, and pay for diapers and supplies for her daughter. Now she is pursuing a master's degree and a career in human resources.
“I am a young Black woman. I get judged before I even speak,” Drummer said. “When The Bridge Project met me, there was no judgment. They just saw me as a mom and they trusted me to make the right decisions.”
