Empowering Single Mothers: Deb's Dream Helps Families Thrive

by Charlotte Kovalchuk • photos courtesy Jake German

After losing both his birth and adoptive mothers, Jake German wanted to honor their memories while also helping solve a poverty issue he saw in his own backyard. “We lived in Crystal Falls, Leander and right down the road there where serious poverty issues in areas adjacent to million-dollar neighborhoods,” he says.

In 2017, Jake and his wife Desiree started Deb’s Dream, a single mother-focused nonprofit named after the women who had a profound impact on Jake’s early life.

LEGACIES OF LOVE

One week before his 18th birthday, Jake lost his birth mother to a heart attack. She was a wonderful woman, he says, but she had always struggled with poverty, bipolar disorder, and multiple addictions while dreaming of a better life for her children. His best friend’s mom took him in as part of her own dream — to help kids in need thrive by providing them with a safe, comfortable environment. She passed away in 2014 from cancer.

Since then, Jake has been on a mission to continue their dreams by helping single moms in need with rent, transportation, and scholarships for their kids’ extracurricular activities. “I get to share their story and their lives with others, and it keeps their legacy alive,” he says. “It keeps a positive lens on what could potentially be a very negative situation for me and my family. Those memories are tough but our work allows us to have joy when we think about them.”

Jake and Desiree now live in Georgetown and are committed to serving moms in Liberty Hill, Leander, Cedar Park, and Georgetown. The need is especially great because getting help from larger nonprofits can be a long, arduous process, he says, and struggling moms often need help quickly.

To date, Deb’s Dream has helped more than 20 single moms pay their rent, provided vehicles for moms who had no means of transportation, and helped kids enjoy camps and other activities their moms couldn’t otherwise afford. The nonprofit has also filled needs for food pantry items and school supplies. “Our goal is to give children from single-mother homes in poverty the opportunities other children have and create equal footing for them,” Jake says.

One of his most memorable Deb’s Dream donations was for a Leander teacher who, along with her children and mother, was being removed from her home after the owner of the house decided to sell it. Deb’s Dream helped her secure a new place by paying the deposit and first month’s rent. "It's not always obvious who needs a helping hand to bridge a gap. She was employed, doing great work for the school locally, but still needed support,” Jake says, adding that her new landlord told him recently she is still living there and is the best tenant he has ever had at any of his properties. “Sometimes, all that's needed is a little help!” Jake says.

LEND A HAND

Deb's Dream’s primary need, Jake says, is for people to spread the word. “Knowing we exist is number one and that we’re here to help when we can. If you know a single mother in need, please send her in our direction, and if it convicts your heart, we always need more donations. I think the challenge is greater than what we can provide a lot of times – there is an immediate need in our community right in front of us.”

Deb’s Dream welcomes sponsors, golfers, and volunteers for its next golf tournament, its main source of fundraising, on October 21 at Twin Creeks Golf Club in Austin. For more event details, check out Deb’s Dream on Facebook or DebsDream.org