Homes for Our Neighbors was begun by The Greater Dallas Justice Revival (GDJR) and launched in September of 2010 to serve the families and individuals placed in transitional and Permanent Supportive Housing. This campaign is in partnership with the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance and Dallas Housing Authority.
This effort mobilized the faith community to serve those individuals as new residents of local neighborhoods by mentoring, bible studies, and working with support services on site, neighborhood landscaping and church affiliation. The campaign also works with local neighborhood associations, schools, civic and business leaders to ensure a healthy quality of life increases in those areas.
Homes for Our Neighbors supports the City of Dallas plan for the development of permanent supportive housing units for chronically homeless individuals by 2014. For over the past two years more than 300 leaders and 3,000 volunteers have committed to work to achieve this plan.
Dallas is at an exciting crossroads in its efforts to end chronic homelessness. The Dallas Housing Authority and the Dallas Metro Homeless Alliance have developed strategies with great success and housed over 2000 currently homeless individuals in permanent supportive housing by the end of 2011.
In view of the community’s need and the stated goals of the community’s elected leaders, Homes for Our Neighbors will partner with these organizations and busy itself in supporting these objectives in the following ways:
Neighborhood Forums: Creating dialogue between churches, neighborhood associations, business groups, support agencies, Dallas Housing Authority, and Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance. Our goal is to ensure a healthy and safe environment for formerly homeless people and their neighbors.
Good Neighbor Covenant: The partnership started with the Greater Dallas Justice Revival (and continues with the Homes for Our Neighbors campaign) Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance, Dallas Housing Authority, Support Service Agencies, and Churches have agreed to work in support of the homeless to find healing, health, and homes.
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Public Education:
The Homes for our Neighbors Campaign involves a series of educational inserts, sermon template, and posters entitled “I Am Not Invisible”. It begins with a series of six stories of formerly homeless individuals, challenged with various physical, mental, or emotional disabilities. On the reverse side of the educational inserts are information about support service agencies involved in these individuals’ lives, the success of The Bridge (The City of Dallas center for homeless), and why housing for the formerly homeless is critical to their success.
Local churches, non-profits, schools, and neighborhood associations are encouraged to utilize the campaign to help educate their members. Churches may wish to preach, teach, or have bible studies that focus on homelessness, disabilities, and their responsibility to the suffering. Local non-profits may use the materials to enhance their outreach to this population group. Neighborhood associations may use the materials to open healthy conversations with residents. The materials help the reader better understand how the treatment of homeless individuals and the placement of them into housing with support services is critical to a healthy community.
- Click here to download PDF copies of resource materials
- If you would like to order church bulletin/worship guide stuffers please click here
Outreach and Service Projects
Churches throughout the greater Dallas area are playing a central role in providing volunteer support to the formerly homeless by gift baskets, bible studies, friendship outreach, recreational outreach, community gardens, etc.
We believe that outreach and service projects serve as a healing agent to humanize the new residents into the greater Dallas area. By working together these efforts address the fears, concerns and/or misconceptions about homeless individuals and families, including those in recovery with mental illnesses, addictions and physical disabilities. The Homes for Our Neighbor campaign is committed to supporting the servant-leaders in our city who have been at the forefront of creating and implementing solutions to the challenges of homelessness. We believe that the many individuals and organizations who have been leading but most often quietly serving the needs of the homeless are answering the call to be the hands and feet of the church to our homeless friends.
Click here to volunteer for service projects:
Steps to Involvement:
1. Fill out the application form to be submitted to the Homes for Our Neighbor Staff.
2. Read the list of opportunities and determine where you feel called to assist.
3. Begin praying about how your calling is to be defined as a volunteer.
4. Meet with Homes for Our Neighbors staff to determine type of partnership.
5. Partnership development established and opportunities defined.
6. Launch of relationship with task force and campaign initiatives.
7. Training of volunteers and partnership defined for long-term relationship.
Click here to fill out volunteer form.
To see the latest 2011 report on homelessness, click here: