The Story Behind Cheryl's Place
Before 2019, a homeless family in Pickens County had nowhere to turn.
Local charities did what they could, but help meant a referral to a shelter in another county — far from the job an adult was working, far from the school a child was attending, far from everything familiar. For roughly 100 children classified as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act, "help" meant being uprooted all over again.
A small group of community members decided that wasn't good enough.
In early 2017, about a dozen neighbors came together to find a local solution — one that could offer immediate shelter while also walking alongside families on the longer road to financial self-sufficiency. They started with a pilot program: one mother, three children, one hotel room. It worked. But turning that proof of concept into a real home took nearly two years of planning, fundraising, and preparation.
Our Purpose
To provide short-term housing assistance, job skills and life skills training to homeless families with children so they may be housed in a stable environment and have the time and chance to become self-sufficient.
Honoring Cheryl Blankinship
Meet the Team
A small team of neighbors and volunteers with decades of experience in finance, ministry, and mentorship all working together to bring families up out of homelessness.