The Circles program is starting to get off the ground.

Circles was created by Move the Mountain Leadership Center, which aspires to form a "critical mass" of leaders focused on ending poverty, according to its Web site.

"The mission of the Circles Campaign is to transform communities by building relationships that inspire and equip people to end poverty," the Web site said.

The program pairs a family that seeks to rise out of poverty with two to four "allies" that work with the family.

The program helps create support networks for individuals and families. The objective is not to decide for people what they need, but to ask them and provide assistance. The church is helping coordinate the program.

Scott Miller, the CEO and founder of Move the Mountain, spoke to citizens at First United Methodist Church in Wadesboro Thursday evening.

He illustrated the simple but profound problems of poverty with the story of a woman he knew years ago. She was living in a trailer with her two children and the front door would not stay shut on a cold night.

As she struggled to use some string to hold it shut, she had a very frustrating thought: "If I just had $10, I could fix this thing."

Circles would help her find someone who could fix the door, what the program calls an "ally." Allies might watch the kids while a single mother does her homework or provide a truck to move into an apartment.

"People need to feel safe in order to take the next step," Miller said.

The program tells participants to set a realistic goal, often in one-year increments, and to create accountability for themselves.

Rev. Rob Rollins, who's helping lead the program locally, said the church and the program were looking 20 years in the future.

"We're going to be here 20 years older whether we do it or not," he said, of addressing the problems of poverty.

At the end of the program, 12 people raised their hands volunteering to be an ally.

The next "Big View" meeting of the program will be May 6 at the church. Meetings are held every two months on the first Thursday of the month.