Liberty student starts Mom’s Life ministry

Charlee Tchividjian reaches out to single mothers in the Greenfield area to mentor them through life’s struggles

They meet in a small back room in a building off the aptly named Church Street. Greetings fly across the room as the women find seats and joke good-naturedly. Billy Graham would be proud as the room calms down only after his great-granddaughter, Charlee Tchividjian, a Liberty University senior, says, “Let’s pray.”

Mom’s Life is a ministry that Tchividjian started to reach out to the single moms in the Lynchburg community, specifically the moms from the impoverished Greenfield housing complex.

The ministry from Lynchburg’s Gospel Community Church acts as a sister to its base organization in Pompano Beach, Fla., according to Tchividjian. Attendance for this particular group varies.

On this night, there were seven moms, each with one or two children and their mentors, a huge contrast from the week before when only two moms attended.

According to city tax data from 2004, the Greenfield district in Lynchburg is one of the most undeveloped parts of the city. Local crime data also shows that, of the 82 registered sex offenders living in the city of Lynchburg and the surrounding areas, 39 live in Greenfield.

Tchividjian has always had a heart to start a ministry like this and work with single mothers.

“I grew up around these types of ministries and single parent homes,” Tchividjian said. “I gave my life to the Lord at 17 and immediately wanted to do a ministry like His Caring Place.”

His Caring Place is a similar ministry based in Florida that Tchividjian worked at while attending high school in the state.

This ministry has a special place in her heart, because her grandparents started it. After working with the ministry during high school, Tchividjian started the original Mom’s Life at her home church.

“We’re just doing what the Bible calls us to do,” Haven Wear, a mentor to the single moms and a friend of Tchividjian’s, said.

According to Wear, each of the young women in Mom’s Life can have one or many mentors. The ministry uses the mentors to focus on building relationships.

“I think it’s really cool that girls their own age can pour into their lives and let them know they’re there for them,” Wear said.
The women range in age from 17 to 23, and some have two or three children already.