FAM ILY
The Presbyterian Home for Children: CELEBRATING 150 YEARS By Carol Muse Evans
Photos by Samantha Ferguson, His Hands Photographs
It’s a staggering statistic. The average age of a homeless person in Alabama is age 6. This is the approximate age of a first grader. One organization in Alabama is seeking to make a huge difference in the lives of homeless children and mothers in Alabama – and one that has been for the last 150 years – is the Presbyterian Home for Children (PHFC) in Talladega, says its president and CEO Doug Marshall. In fact, this organization serves children and families who seek healing and hope for their troubled lives. The PHFC is helping to answer a critical need for Alabama’s homeless children and families,” according to Jacque Cordle-Ramey, director of development. “So many children are separated from their moms due to simple poverty and the mom’s inability to find and hold employment due to a lack of education or job skills. “At the Home we are able to not only work in partnership with mothers and help them obtain the education or training that they need to become successful and independent from assistance, we also work in tandem with her family providing parenting classes and counseling encouraging their family unit to regain its strength and potential, Cordle-Ramey explains. The PHFC is a ministry of Alabama’s three presbyteries of the Presbyterian Church (USA): North Alabama, the Sheppards and the Lapsleys, and South Alabama; and led by a 25-member board of trustees. Visitors will feel the love from among staff members, many who have worked their entire work lives here and remain committed to the organization. Talk to anyone who has lived here on this beautiful, rolling, 80-acre campus, and you’ll find a basket of emotions associated with the home. While all seem thankful and have grown from being here, memories can be different, because most people come to this home when they have hit rock bottom – whether it’s the child or the mother, or both. It is usually bad 30 | birminghamparent | august 2018