The topic of homelessness -- not in a generic worldwide sense but the growing reality of it in my own suburb -- keeps coming up, particularly as housing prices, medical costs, and other expenses increase and wages and savings accounts don't. There are more folks than you may think who truly are just one paycheck away from homeless. No savings, no health insurance, maxed-out credit cards, mouths to feed, rent or mortgage to pay -- lose your job -- homeless. They often aren't mentally ill, they aren't criminals, they aren't lazy or stupid or rebellious -- they are simply men and women (or families) who have hit upon hard times and don't have a support network of family and friends who can (or will) take them in and help them through till they get on their feet again.  They make too much money to qualify for public assistance until they actually hit rock bottom.  They get sick or they can't afford to get the car fixed so they become become jobless and homeless.  That just seems wrong.

The Secondary mission and a future goal of FHC Ministries will be to educate people on how to use their own God-given talents to create their own prosperity, and to educate those who run or wish to start businesses on the concept and necessity of paying a living wage.

Be the answer to a prayer.  Get Involved.

We are founded on the vision that changing how our money works transforms our world. This begins with each one of us -- we create wealth and security for ourselves and our families by supporting and investing in our neighbors, our communities, local natural resources and local independent enterprises.  When we value these in our own community that we create value for both investors (that’s you! that’s me!) and the community we influence. (That’s ours!)

The primary goal of FHC Ministries is to fill the gap between unfunded or underfunded “public assistance programs” and the point of actual need before homelessness occurs.  We intend to become an eligible block grant recipient and private foundation assistance recipient and distributor of these funds to the providers of services to the working poor in communities across the country.

It doesn’t do any good if the millions – maybe even billions of dollars – of grant resources goes to organizations that simply provide lip service or “study” homelessness in America.  It doesn’t do any good have such restrictive policies that a person has to actually be jobless and homeless to receive benefits.  It doesn’t do any good to limit assistance to $50.00 toward one utility bill if a family’s rent or mortgage payment is $600.00 and they are already behind.  Our goal is intervention and prevention of homelessness in the first place.  An extra paycheck, if somebody has been out of work due to illness.  A day care payment.  A car repair or a car payment.  A single utility bill paid in full.  A prescription.

Yes, there will be a screening process in place, and accountability and transparency, but our guidelines for recipients will be somewhat more lenient than the government's so that people can actually get the help that they need!

We believe our campaign to make the millions (maybe even billions) of dollars of foundation grant money available to the working poor of America before the catastrophe of homelessness hits, offers this country more essential insights into current political and economic reality than any other modern movement and therefore can empower the most profound social transformation of our age.

Since we ourselves must embody the societal changes we wish to see, we vow to continue our work with fierce devotion, but also with mutual respect, selflessness and above all, honesty.

We can do it.  You can help.

• 08/22/2007 00:45
  • 08/22/2007 00:20