Milwaukee's 'Our Daily Bread' helps develop life skills to young women
MILWAUKEE - FOX6 News is dedicated to sharing stories that matter to you. That is exactly why we are working with The Milwaukee Times Weekly Newspaper for a project we call "Community Connection." They include stories affecting communities of color and the people making a difference.
In this story, we introduce you to a program that was created to better the lives of single mothers and at-risk girls on the city's north side.
Lena is a single-mother of four including 9-year-old Corlena, 7-year-old Jaquis, 2-year-old Jovanni, and newborn, Justice. Lena admits her days are busy.
"Really busy. Sometimes I'm up between 4 a.m. and I'm not down until at least 11 p.m.," Lena said.
Lena
Even so, Lena makes parenting look easy. The truth is, her life up to this point has been anything but.
Lena doesn't go into detail about her past trauma like the "accident" she can't remember. The accident left her blind in one eye. Lena said there is a lot she does not remember before age 15.
"I didn't have the best relationship with my mother." Lena said. "Being a single mother is hard. I didn't have the best relationship with her father. He wasn't really trying to be the fathering type."
In 2017, Lena moved from Chicago to Milwaukee for a fresh start.
"There were a lot of times when I felt I wasn't doing a good job, or I wanted to give up," Lena said.
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That is where the community outreach center, Our Daily Bread (ODB), comes in. The faith-based center helps young Black girls and single-mothers develop life skills. Their programs help clients break away from unhealthy behaviors such as gangs, substance abuse, and teen pregnancy. In its 20 years of operation, ODB has helped hundreds of young women.
ODB's founder Lea Kyle-Lewis grew up in a single-family home in Milwaukee's 53206 ZIP code. The ZIP code is one of Milwaukee's most economically depressed. It also boasts the state's highest incarceration rate of Black men. A 2013 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee study found nearly 95% of residents in the area are Black. Two-thirds of children there live in poverty.
ODB offers pre-natal care to new mothers.
"We work with them while they are pregnant, and after they have the babies, we continue to work with them," Kyle-Lewis said. "The goal of that is to decrease infant mortality and low birth rate."
Lea Kyle-Lewis
In addition to prenatal services, ODB provides mental health and AODA support for moms dealing with drug issues. Young offenders get help to complete court-ordered service.
"So our whole goal is to show them, so matter what you've gone through you can still achieve your dreams. But you just have to go after it," Kyle-Lewis said.
Lena is working to move her family out of the 53206 ZIP code into a home. She credits ODB and Kyle-Lewis for being her support system.
"Jaquis, I remember when he first wrote a card for my birthday. He called me 'Spider-Mom.' I said, 'what's a Spider-Mom?' He said it's Spider-Man but a mom. You're always swinging into action. You're always doing the best you can as a mom, and we love you for that," Lena said.
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Our Daily Bread relies on donations to help clients. You are invited to securely donate to the center and its services. That money buys transit passes, Uber fares, even food for single moms who are in the most dire circumstances.
If you are pregnant or know someone who needs help with obtaining baby items or other resources, you can call Our Daily Bread at 414-755-0535.