In May of 2022, the Trent Hill Center added a fourth program to our service umbrella. Family-Centered Community Support Services (FCCSS) is a mouthful, but nonetheless a much-needed service for children and families in Darlington County.

Jina Hyde, one of THC’s two Family Resource Specialists, describes the program as “Essentially that missing piece to the puzzle for clients. What I've noticed for the families is that they may have all the other pieces to the puzzle except for how to successfully parent, keep a job, or co-parent.” “I am the middle piece to stop a bigger catastrophe from happening,” she adds.

The “bigger catastrophes” she references include instances of child abuse, neglect, and abandonment–all of which are shared experiences of children and youth in the foster care system. As a preventive measure, the purpose of FCCSS is to intervene in the family unit at a point at which, with the help of wraparound support and resources, children and their parents or guardians can avoid trauma-inducing separation and instead experience the benefits of a healthy home life.

In a matter of just two months, Jina has noticed that single mothers make up the majority of her clients. “There are a lot of women out there that need help and don’t know the proper resources. A lot of these moms, they just need to be heard,” she says.

As a Family Resource Specialist, Jina hopes her greatest impact will be her kindness. She explains: “Kindness is my superpower–it doesn’t mean that I am proficient at being kind at all times, but I am very aware of the fact that being kind gets you further.”