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Community Corner

I Am Hope Cafe, Ministry Brightens Up the Holidays for People in Need

Whether it's providing food, shelter or just a lighthearted Christmas party, the I Am Hope Cafe is helping Brandon area homeless enjoy their holiday.

Something that Vince Ferraro once uttered has blossomed into a full-fledged coalition of churches reaching out to the homeless community.

After Cynthia Pinckney Ministries put on a Christmas dinner for the homeless in 2006, Ferraro and others were having a conversation about how they could do more for the growing number of homeless people they were seeing on the streets. Ferraro had a thought.

"I just didn't see any reason why the different churches couldn't work together, so we arranged a meeting with people from different parishes," said Ferraro, who is also a board member of Emergency Care Help Organization (ECHO). "We created a board with different representatives from the churches in the area and organizations that help the homeless. Then we found a place in Mango that we had to renovate. The community came together around it and donated $50,000 worth of materials and all the labor to get it done. Now we have a great facility."

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Their efforts resulted in Greater Brandon Ecumenical Ministries, made up of more than 20 local religious organizations, and the I Am Hope Cafe, which three years later is going strong. They serve hot meals three days a week and offer hot showers with a portable shower unit provided by Bell Shoals Church. A clothes closet at the First Baptist Church of Mango ensures that those who can't afford new garments don't go without.

When the temperature gets into the low 30s, volunteers round up the homeless and take them to the organization's cold weather shelter, where they are fed and provided with rooms for the night.

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“I find it very rewarding to know that we have developed a system where we can help people in need,” Ferraro said. “I’ve gotten to know some of the people, and we’re seeing people who are just in hard times. It hasn’t been their fault, it’s just been bad luck and the current economy. What gets to me the most is to see the little kids. To see families that are in that type of situation is tough. So many of the homeless just want to be off the streets. We as a county have to come together and do what we can.”

On Tuesday, I Am Hope Cafe held a Christmas party, where clothes were given out and families fed.

"We had a Santa Claus there for the kids and we gave out some clothes," Ferraro said. "We had families that are low income families, not just the homeless. We want to help anyone we can, especially when they have children."

For more info on I Am Hope Cafe and how you can help, visit iamhopecafe.org.

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