Pounds of Care

Who We Serve

Motherly Care (MOCA) Family Services founded by Joyce S. Pearson a minority/woman owned non-profit 501©(3) Pounds of Care has facilitated delivery of meaningful opportunities to River Region families for more than 30 years, significantly impacting and restoring “at risk” men and women. Over this time, MOCA has posted a strong record of performance, spurring the development of human capital through provision of social services to the target population, women who have fallen “off the track” and require a helping hand. Central in these efforts is the effective design and delivery by MOCA staff of occupational training programs which equip at-need women with highly marketable skills which open the door to new employment and a better life. 

Loveless Civil Rights Trail Estates Development

Pounds of Care/MOCA is collaborating with Westside Wood Works an organization created to provide men with the tools to support themselves and their families. The initial “gateway” home project will be to cosmetically refresh and upgrade the homes from Hill Street to Oak at Fred Gray Avenue; 10-12 new homes will be built along that stretch. In addition to building new homes, Westside Wood Works will teach all aspects of rehabbing houses including carpentry, painting, electrical, plumbing HVAC, framing, drywall installation, tile work.  

The collaboration will provide infrastructure, assist this underserved community by also helping  small businesses located in that area by building new homes, hiring neighborhood contractors and workers. The program’s three fold plan is job/creation/workforce advancement, achieving measurable financial goals, and ultimately ownership of newly built homes.  

Training at Westside Wood Works

Learning activities are based at the Westside Wood Works facility located in Montgomery, AL. Instruction delivery is in a classroom setting, and conducted by a licensed professional architect and urban planner.  Each man is pre-qualified for employment.  Vocational Training begins on 1st day and continues daily.  Each participant is paid a living wage. Panels for homebuilding will be produced in a manufacturing facility, and will be transported from manufacturing facility to home site by truck. A slab is poured at the potential home site, panels are erected on slab and finishers complete construction in 45-60 days.  In the manufacturing facility training rooms and on the job training is used to teach specific vocation skills.

Life skills are taught to include:  financial literacy, financial planning, and parenting from a dad’s perspective, conflict resolution, nutrition and healthy lifestyles, citizenship and community leadership, and 1st time homebuyers’ class with mortgage qualifications. This support begins with the ability to pay bills and save for future needs.  It also includes a better understanding of critical life skills such as parenting and anger management. Each employee is personally mentored to see that their role as a father or husband is the beginning of creating stable communities.  Employees continue to be mentored and are encouraged to participate in a social network of people who support each other and depend on a higher being to thrive in this broken world.