Director
Sharon Mays-Ferguson
At the age of seventeen I became a teen parent and from that day forward, I believe that God has been preparing me for such a time as this. My greatest pleasure is providing love and support to teen mothers and their children. After spending five years as a volunteer with New Concept’s In Touch Parent Program, I decided to become a foster parent to a set of twins whose mother was a fourteen year old minor. The more time I spent with these minor parents, the heavier the burden in my spirit became to help fill the needs of these teen moms." New Concept's program offered parenting classes, independent living skills, problem identification/solving strategies, budgeting, time management, sex/birth control education and various other services to minor parents with children.
Ms. Mays-Ferguson has over 35 years of experience working with adults and adolescents in various programs. She has nine years of experience in Shelter Care, Adult Transitional Living Center (ATLC), Community Support Programs (CSP) and Mental Health Assistance all relating to transitional housing and community support services. Sharon is also a member of The Emergency Shelter Task Force sub-committee for Homeless Minor Parents/Second Chance Housing. Sharon was instrumental in helping develop ATLC, a Community Based Residential Facility for mentally ill adults. As a treatment oriented program, staff was responsible for implementing treatment plans, independent living skills, daily skills, coordinated group activities, transitional housing, transportation and medication monitoring. As a staff member, it was part of her responsibility to help provide models of appropriate behavior and to facilitate individual and group counseling sessions. Decision-making is one of her strongest administrative abilities as well as rehabilitative programming, which includes the residents, family members, mentors and support from community based agencies.
Sharon's commitment to the care and safety of youth inspired her to create, organize and structure a program that worked to assure that homeless minor parents can live in a safe and supervised home setting. She is also responsible for developing Transition to Independence (TTI), a specialized program for teen parents and their children that provide a high level of supervision and coordination of comprehensive services. The TTI model is used for both the alternative and transitional housing for female parents between the ages of 13 and 21. These agencies would be responsible for assessing the needs, providing services and client referrals to the appropriate organizations.
When addressing the needs of homeless minor parents with children, it was necessary to deal with the many dynamics and under currents that lead to their negative living conditions. Family conflicts, abuse, neglect and sexual assault are primary reasons these young mothers give for living on the streets. In 1998, Intercession, Inc. was born through the shear drive, determination and dedication of Ms. Mays-Ferguson to help eliminate homelessness for these teen moms and their children. Intercession, Inc. is designed to provide alternative housing assistance to homeless minor parents between the ages of 13-17 with children from diverse backgrounds throughout Milwaukee County. It is a population that is rapidly growing in southeastern Wisconsin, the area in which this group home serves. A boarded up house and 2 vacant lots were purchased from the City to be renovated and used as housing for this project. At that time, the area where the vacant home was located was an eye sore and a disgrace to the other neighbors. Sharon was able to raise over $165,000 to allow for 6 teen mothers and their children to be housed until they became 18.
Since 2001, Intercession, Inc. has provided housing and supportive services to over 136 teen mothers and their babies from diverse backgrounds throughout Milwaukee County and surrounding areas . Most teens are referred from the State of Wisconsin Department of Children and Families.
Intercession, Inc. is heading toward Phase II of its mission, "Andrea's Place", the transitional living component of the TTI model. Intercession, Inc. is a
501(c) 3 not-for-profit organization.
