REASONS TO GIVE

One Setback Can Change Everything

So can your help!

The Dove Fund delivers timely support to alleviate home loss and trauma for vulnerable Lowcountry families.

Gifts to the Dove Fund are fully tax deductible. You can feel good knowing that your dollars will directly improve the lives of struggling families in our Lowcountry community..

A modest boost at a pivotal moment can have a maximum return. Will you provide it?

Why Our Neighbors Need Help


Many working-poor families in the Charleston Tri-County Area are barely hanging on. Single parents with low-paying jobs lack savings or safety nets, leaving them only a setback away from utility disconnection and eviction.


  • Nearly 40% of tri-county households cannot afford the basic cost of living, even those who are working.

  • More than 600 local school children are currently homeless.

  • North Charleston ranks #1 nationally for eviction filings among large U.S. cities.


Meet Katie



Last summer, Katie Leiberick, a single mother in Summerville, was taking a walk when she was struck by a hit-and-run driver, knocked unconscious, and left for dead on the side of the road. Katie’s infant son was put in foster care indefinitely while she recovered from surgeries, serious wounds, and injuries. Naturally, her fervent desire was to get well and regain custody of her baby.

During the long months of this grueling time of challenge, Katie relied on the Dove Fund to help with her rent and utility bills. Knowing that her bills were paid gave Katie a firm foundation. A natural fighter, Katie did everything within her power to recover and return to a normal life. Today, Katie is working as a receptionist at a veterinarian’s office. She now has her son back at home with her, filling her with joy.

“”These people really do love you with the love of God, and you truly feel it, and it brings you peace,” Katie says. “I am still in awe of the things that they helped me accomplish.”[The Dove Fund] stepped in and provided not only the assistance I needed, but also a sense of hope and reassurance.”


Debra’s Story: Hope Provided


Last summer, Debra had to quit working after she gave birth to a son with chronic health issues. Sadly, the child’s father did not provide for her. Dove Fund took care of overdue rent to prevent an eviction, paid her utilities and made a car payment, buying Debra precious time to get back on her feet. Thanks to our job counseling outreach, Debra is now training for a med tech career.

“The Dove Fund stepped in and provided not only the assistance I needed, but also a sense of hope and reassurance.”



Meet Christina



Christina Grant of North Charleston started working at 15 and eventually became a manager at a fast-food restaurant. When a crippling disease struck at age 52, she was suddenly forced to stay home. When Christina and her teenage granddaughter were served eviction papers, Dove Fund mediated with her landlord, paid her back rent, and connected her to other support groups, keeping this family housed during the gap.

“Without them, I don’t know where I would be, and I thank God for them.”

Christina Grant



Meet E.L. Hall

When E.L. Hall’s workplace closed, she fell behind on bills and faced eviction. Dove Fund bridged the gap for her and her sons.

“Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.”

Psalm 55:6



Meet Janise

Janise wound up living in her car after her career went sideways. Dove Fund paid her move-in deposit for a fresh start.

“…the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove.”

Luke 3:22



Meet Tasia

When Tasia’s work hours were severely cut, she faced eviction while finding and training for new employment. Dove Fund helped with the family’s rent and connected Tasia to partner charities who kept her lights on and paid for her young son’s after-school care. With this timely support, Tasia was able to get back on her feet. 

“Dove Fund means hope. A place where you can feel a warmth and security that things will be okay.”

Tasia Simmons


Support That Lasts Beyond the Crisis


Poverty exacerbates every kind of problem by limiting one’s ability to respond to life’s setbacks. Dove Fund’s clients are typically floundering after being hit by curve balls such as:

  • Loss of employment

  • The unplanned birth of a child for a single mom

  • Prolonged illness or disability

  • Death of a close family member
  • Grandparents suddenly having to take in their grandchildren

  • Breakdown of the family’s only vehicle



Due to a complexity of struggles, many clients need support over a 12-month period; our goal is to return people to work and stability, and we follow up to see if they are reaching their milestones. Often a family receives assistance more than once. In our experience, offering ongoing support over a limited period produces the best results.

In total, the average client might receive around $2,000 in help, such as rent or utility bill payments. We establish action plans and nurturing relationships. Every so often, a volunteer calls just to check in, offering prayer and encouragement to keep the head of household moving toward stability.

Bills are paid on behalf of clients. Money is never given directly to the households.


Every Story Begins with an Unexpected Hardship

The Dove Fund delivers timely support to alleviate home loss and trauma for vulnerable Lowcountry families.

A modest boost at a pivotal moment can have a maximum return. Will you provide it?

Erica


The death of a close family member sent Erica into grief and depression she couldn’t climb out of alone.

Ebony


Ebony’s car breaking down on the way to work left her with no way to get to her job.

Keith


When six grandchildren suddenly needed a home, Keith became their caregiver overnight.

Michelle


Back surgery and a long recovery left Michelle without income.

Where It All Began

TThe Dove Fund began in 2022 when two volunteers, acting from Christian compassion, walked alongside Veronica, a wheelchair-bound mother of five in the Lowcountry. Her family had been evicted for months and had exhausted all available support from their personal network. By the time the Dove Fund volunteers met them, Veronica and her children were mired in despair.

A stroke had left Veronica paralyzed from the waist down. Once she had worked cleaning schools; now she was destitute and struggling to pay the weekly fee at a dangerous motel on Rivers Avenue, where prostitution, alcohol abuse, and drug use filled neighboring rooms. The children were afraid to go to school and spent every day crammed into a dark room with only two beds, some sleeping on the floor.

At first, the volunteers thought they could solve the problem by making phone calls and connecting Veronica to indigent services. But calling crisis hotlines and trying to secure appointments with case workers led nowhere. Agencies were overwhelmed, and Veronica was too sick, poor, and exhausted to make her case or complete the required forms.

The volunteers reached a decision point. They could say they had tried and walk away, or they could assume the role of a concerned family friend. Not knowing what to expect, they chose the second path and launched a determined rescue campaign: driving family members to food pantries, accompanying them to nonprofit agencies, taking the older teens to job interviews, and repeatedly advocating for the family at the apartment complex that would eventually accept them as residents.

Today, Veronica and her children are safely housed and stable. The Dove Fund continues to walk alongside Lowcountry families in crisis, offering individualized care and practical support so households can stabilize after hardship.ged and configured, which you can insert into your posts and pages.


Each Dove Fund story begins the way Veronica’s did: one family in crisis, and someone willing to stand beside them until they are safely home.

THE DOVE FUND MEANS HOPE



“A place where you can feel warmth and security that things will be okay.”



Gifts to the Dove Fund are fully tax deductible. You can feel good knowing that your dollars will directly improve the lives of struggling families in our Lowcountry community.

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