Our mission is intersecting faith and community to empower
Grayson County families to end child homelessness.
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Message from our Board Chair |
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In March of 2018, Leigh Walker was hired as the first Executive Director for Family Promise of Grayson County. She joined Family Promise a few months before we opened our doors to assist families experiencing homelessness in our community. Since that time, Leigh has overseen the case management of the families we serve, trained hundreds of volunteers, built partnerships with other social service agencies, and basically served as the face of Family Promise in our community. I am now in my third year serving on the Board and it has been a real pleasure working with Leigh. On behalf of the entire Family Promise community, I would like to thank Leigh for her dedication and leadership and let her know how much her work is appreciated by the Board, our partner congregations, our volunteers, and the families we serve.
With love and gratitude,
Kelly Reed
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Many thanks to our congregations! |
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Thank you to our host churches who continue to support our guests by providing hospitality, food, and shelter. Our March host congregations include Covenant Presbyterian in Sherman, Grace Lutheran in Denison, First United Methodist in Sherman, Georgetown Baptist in Pottsboro, and Fairview Baptist in Sherman. A new guest family is scheduled to enter the program today, and I am fairly certain that anyone who is lucky enough to meet them will adore this precious 3-year-old and his mother!
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In our February newsletter, you read about our new Family HOPE (Housing Opportunities to Prevent Eviction) program designed to help families facing homelessness remain in their homes. Since that writing, we have helped 2 multigeneration families (including a total of 7 adults and 10 children) avoid becoming homeless! Preventing homelessness is much less costly financially and emotionally for families.
Families assisted through this program must be facing eviction from a home they rent or own, have children under 18, have at least one working adult, and have a viable plan for financial stability following the initial assistance. These families agree to participate in intensive case management and budgeting and to pay back at least 20% of the amount of financial assistance Family Promise provides. Kudos to our case manager Amyee McAlister for all her hard work in keeping these families from becoming homeless!
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Get to Know the Family Promise Board |
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This month's featured Board member is Tyler Lewis! Tyler has been an active volunteer and Coordinator through the Whitewright Church of Christ since we began serving guests nearly three years ago.
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He is married to his lovely wife, Beth, and is the father of two energetic children, Elizabeth and Dmitri. For the last four years, he has been answering his calling as a preacher because he loves sharing the Word of God with others. When he is not occupied with family or work, Tyler enjoys a rousing game night with friends, watching movies, or reading a good novel. Since there simply is not enough time in the day for all of these wonderful things (and serving Family Promise as well!), Tyler states he also is working on a time machine in his "spare" time. If you have any tips, he would appreciate any help you can give; but he would be happy with a pleasant conversation and a cup of coffee instead. |
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If you can balance a checkbook and understand your bank statements, then you likely have the skills needed to be a financial mentor! We are looking for people to pair with families we serve in order to be a resource for developing and maintaining good financial habits. This might entail a monthly “check-in” via phone or FaceTime, or as the pandemic situation allows, could be a meeting in person.
As an extension of case management for families graduating from our program, and as part of our new Family HOPE services, we are in the process of developing a more comprehensive financial literacy component. Having volunteers establish relationships and serve as mentors will be one facet of this. If you have interest in becoming a mentor, or if you would be willing to teach a class about budgeting or other financial skills, please call Leigh at 903-271-1088 or email director@familypromisegrayson.org. This is a great way to get involved while maintaining a healthy social distance!
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Because of your generous donations, we recently have been able to:
- Pay the utility deposit for a family moving into a new home
- Help with car repairs for former guests
- Provide food for families staying in motels
- Provide gas cards for families so they can get to work
- Provide diapers and toiletries to families
- Provide furniture and mattresses to a family
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A Child's Prayer of Thanks |
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Dear God, I'm thankful for all You give: for food, for love, and a place to live. I thank you for my family, too, and I want you to know that I love You! Amen
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If you would like to learn more about Family Promise of Grayson County including:
- How to participate
- How to volunteer
- How to support through donations
Didn’t get this newsletter directly? Join our mailing list by sending an email to the newsletter editor. Be sure to forward this to a friend!
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