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Family Promise of Collin County to make cardboard box city
By Kim Nguyen, knguyen@acnpapers.com
Since establishing its nonprofit status in July, Family Promise of Collin County is still looking for more churches and community support to get off the ground.
“This is a serious mission. Homelessness is happening in our community,” said Jana Carmichael, board member of Family Promise and director of missions at Creekwood United Methodist Church in Allen. “As long as Samaritan Inn is turning away families, it’s a huge problem.”
Gary Rodenbaugh, founding member of Family Promise, couldn’t agree more.
To further encourage the Collin County community to support FPCC’s endeavor to raise awareness and resources to help families regain independence, youth and adults from area churches will gather at Creekwood United Methodist Church in Allen to form the first annual Cardboard Box City on Saturday.
From 3:30 p.m. on Saturday until 7 a.m. Sunday, participants will be issued a cardboard box that will serve as a makeshift shelter for the night.
“The concept of sleeping outside in a box gives the participants a small glimpse into what it might be like to be homeless and without a permanent place to lay their head at night,” Carmichael said. “But in no way do we intend to surmise that an optional sleepout is anything like the real deal of situational homelessness.”
About 100 participants have pre-registered to be a part of the cardboard box city this weekend. Though not strictly a youth mission, Carmichael said the registrants’ ages range from middle school-aged to college-aged volunteers.
“Oftentimes, families become interested in various missions because of how enthusiastic the youth are to carry them out,” she said. “Plus, this is a fun way to encourage a new generation of volunteers.”
Carmichael said walk-in participants are welcome to attend the event if the required registration paperwork is filled out. The registration forms are available on Family Promise’s Web site.
Participating churches include Forest Grove Christian Church in Lucas, Grace Presbyterian Church in Plano, West Plano Presbyterian Church, First United Methodist Church in Plano, Trinity Presbyterian Church in McKinney and Creekwood United Methodist Church in Allen.
Carmichael said Family Promise of Collin County is still seeking additional support from more local churches before having the adequate resources to officially open its doors to families experiencing situational homelessness.
“We’ve been working non-stop over the last 18 months to get off the ground, and we couldn’t have made it this far without the support of the community,” she said. “We currently have six host churches ready to host families, but we really need six or seven more to really get up and running.”
The reality of the issue is that without the support of additional churches and congregations, Family Promise of Collin County cannot provide assistance to families experiencing situational homelessness. Though a “multitude of people” have stepped forward to support Family Promise despite the hard economic times, the nonprofit needs more churches to create a safe environment for everyone involved.
“Between finding an office or day center and hiring a program director, Family Promise can survive on a relatively small budget thanks to the support of a network of volunteers and donations from participating congregations,” he said. “But we can’t perpetuate the program without having the startup funds and support.”
Family Promise of Collin County provides a way for religions congregations to work together to help homeless families. Each congregation participating in the program provides overnight lodging and meals for three to five families for one week every two or three months on a rotating basis. Homeless families stay at the house of worship from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily. Each morning, guests are taken by van to a day care center where they meet with the network director, receive care for preschool children, look for housing and employment or go out to school or work. Nationally, more than 3,500 congregations participate in the Family Promise Networks, also known as Interfaith Hospitality Networks, where many thousands of volunteers help families regain their independence.
For information about Family Promise of Collin County, visit www.FamilyPromiseofCollinCounty.org.
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