There’s a quote by Fred Rogers (of Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood fame), of all people, that sometimes resurfaces when disaster coverage overwhelms the news: “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” Rogers was actually quoting his mother, but it’s still most often attributed to his PBS program during an episode where he gave a reassuring response to a troubled letter he received. Now, as trauma and disaster dominate national news headlines, when you look past the initial shock and awe, there is always someone helping.
Enter Audrey Williams, a Northeast resident since 2001, founding member of Titus Mothers Ministries (TMM), a foundation meant to give aid, shelter, and resources to struggling single mothers. The operation started when Williams helped support a single mother who fled a domestic abuse situation from Florida and settled in Minneapolis. The woman, Kamika Graham, got back on her feet thanks to Williams, and now lives in North Carolina. She published a book called “Diamond in the Rough: The True Story of a Domestic Violence Survivor.”
Since its founding, TMM has mostly stuck to local help, but after seeing the devastation wrought on Texas by Hurricane Harvey, Williams knew she had to extend her reach.
“I just couldn’t sit back and say ‘I can’t.’ I couldn’t not do anything,” she said,
Williams didn’t know anyone from Dallas personally, but decided to seize an opportunity to send help when she heard of other relief efforts happening in Minneapolis. Lacking the resources to make the deliveries herself, Williams partnered with the Sisters of Nations, who are based out of South Minneapolis.
Williams put out a plea online for donations: things like formula, diapers, and other things families in stricken areas might be short on. She dipped into some of her own reserves of supplies as well in order to send as much south as possible. Sisters of Nations then took what she prepared, and had it shipped south with their own donations. Williams wants to continue to correspond with other organizations with access to trucks to send more.
Williams has been a single mother for 31 years. Titus Mothers Ministries was designed to offer the kind of support she wished she had when she was raising her daughter. The operation is based out of her home in Northeast, but she is looking for a space to house the organization, undergoing the process of becoming an official non-profit. The Methodist church on Cleveland and Lowry allows her to use their meeting spaces from time to time, too.
“I wanted to do something on a grander scale for single moms,” she said. “It’s worked so far, but I want to get out of my home.”
The biggest supply drives she manages are a back to school stockpile in July every year, and a holiday housewarming package donation that will be starting shortly before Thanksgiving. (The Northeaster featured the holiday care package drive last year. Look for it here on page 13.
These drives are purely meant to be local, but she is putting out the call once more for donations to be sent to Mexico next.
“They have absolutely nothing and are in need of everything to begin rebuilding their lives,” she wrote online. “Please inbox me if you can help!”
Locals wanting to help Williams prepare care packages for hurricane and earthquake victims are encouraged to reach out to TMM via e-mail or phone at titusmothersministries@gmail.com, or 612-424-7140. As the Titus Mothers Ministries grows, Williams said she may need to gather a more steady workforce to keep supplies moving also.
“This is the community that takes care of itself,” she said fondly. “A lot of people want to give, they just don’t know how to. I just do my part.”