Natalie Bojko's quick smile and merry eyes belie the gravity of her daily challenge of housing and helping homeless families in Carbon County.

Bojko is the new director of Family Promise, a Lehighton-based nonprofit.The 33-year-old Palmerton woman came to the job well-prepared with a master's degree in social work and years of experience helping those in need.Bojko (pronounced boyko) grew up in York and earned her undergraduate degree in sociology, with a concentration in criminal justice and social work, at East Stroudsburg University. That's also where she met her husband, John, who is from Palmerton.She went on to earn a master's degree in social work, and is a licensed social worker.Bojko has worked at Valley Youth House and with Northwestern Human Services' foster care program. Most recently, she worked for Community and Residential Empowerment Services in Tamaqua.She hit the ground running on Feb. 23, interviewing potential guests at the organization's day center on South Third Street in Lehighton, getting acquainted with staff and the daily rhythm of life in the program."This opportunity came up, and I had wanted to get involved with Family Promise for years," Bojko said.She knew about the program and Kim Fludgate, board president of Family Promise, through her social services work."It's exciting, and it's nice to work in the community you live in," Bojko said.She said she "loves getting out in the community and meeting people, and helping families."That she did on Saturday during a basketball fundraiser at Palmerton Area High School.Funding is always a challenge for the organization, which operates on a bare-bones budget of about $90,000 a year. The money mostly comes from donations."We adjust our services to the money that we have, so the more money we have, the more we can help," Bojko said. "There are a lot more families that need services that we can't provide. It would be great if we could help everybody with security deposits for a home, or with employment money to get them back on their feet. As much as we can give them, we do."She dreams of a time when Family Promise will be able to provide emergency rent money to prevent families from becoming homeless.Family Promise currently has five families on its waiting list. If members turn out to be drug users or have criminal backgrounds, the organization steers them elsewhere to support services.Bojko was surprised at the local community's willingness to help those in need."I've been here a week, and just the outpouring of generosity and support from the community is breathtaking. Family Promise is based on donations, so it's great that people stop by to drop off donations of cleaning supplies and money. People call and ask what we need, they do fundraisers and present us with checks. It's amazing that people want to help and are so committed."The organization is currently in need of paper products, a playroom rug, and curtains.It's best to call first and ask what is needed. The number is 610-379-4757.One upcoming need is a new kitchen stove for the day center. Guests are provided with breakfast and dinner at the churches where they sleep, but use the day center kitchen to cook their own lunches. Family Promise also appreciates those who can teach, whether how to build a resume, balance a budget, cook nourishing meals or some other life skill.Bojko anticipates expanding the program to serve more people."Hopefully, we'll have more local congregations involved. It's a lot. Each congregation has all of our families for a week at a time, so it's a lot to ask of their volunteers," she said. "They do a fabulous job, but it would be great to get more churches involved."