The churches and volunteers are not paid. Hobert Freeman, Social Services director for Edgecombe County, can see potential pitfalls. We don't just want to pass the buck over to the churches. You really haven't accomplished your mission here. His county hired a secular person with a background in psychology to coordinate the matches.
Churches have resources, vans that sit idle during the week, members who have talents.
On a Sunday in August, Mary Howie sat quietly toward the back of Steele Creek AME Zion Church in Charlotte, where Ralph Williamson is a minister. He paired Howie, who was on welfare for about 20 years, with Gail Clark, a member of his congregation. The two women talk a few times a week. They are more like sisters than social worker and client, Howie said. She was pregnant at 17 and dropped out of high school.