Helping Single Parents

DS To Parent Helping Single Parents by Dee Morris (NAPS)}—Being a single parent doesn’t mean you're:alone. My husband and I divorced in 1979. Despite my determination to maintain my family’s lfestyle, it was difficult for me to shoulder the extra expenses of a single parent home and continue with many of the activities my children and I enjoyed. I began to feel upset with myself and helpless to change my situation. J A number of different organizatlons can have social benefits for single parents and their children. Fortunately, groups such as Parents Without Partners (PWP) exist. The organization sponsors social events, lectures and discus- sions, as well as educational activities that helped me meet people who were in circumstances similar to mine. The group proved to be an mexpensive and effective way for both me and my children to have fun, meet new people and be together. The closeness I experienced among the members of my PWP chapter was like nothing I had known before. The newrelationships helped me to deal with much of the emptiness, confusion and grief I was experiencing and helped me and my children adjust to our new hives. Dee Moarris is a member of the Cape Semo Chapter 1147 of PWP in Missouri. PWP’s chapters all operate under the slogan “where new friendships begin.” For more information, visit www. parentswithoutpartners.org.