Beyond our Congregation

Beyond Our Congregation is the “Mission” Component of our Church or Group of dedicated souls among us who take God’s love and work beyond the church walls.

Beyond Our Congregation or (BOC) tries to make sure that the congregation’s focus of mission stays as single points of light, rather than being diffused into many different directions.

There are each year, two focal points of interest for the BOC to involve our congregation in being God’s hands and feet.

The first project is called: A Night of Grace.

A Night of Grace

“Our mission is to provide a safe and secure location, for those in need. In doing so, we hope to give a grace period for those to coordinate a long-term solution provided by family, law enforcement and/or social services.”

Social Services and in some cases, family, are not always a 24 hour amenity. In most cases it takes time to coordinate and plan these services and solutions. Some individuals do not have a phone or safe place to coordinate these efforts.

Grace Church, has partnering with Local Hotels, Local Law Enforcement and Social Services, provides a hotel room, for one or two nights, to those individuals who meet certain criteria. The goal is to provide the amenity of time and accessibility in order for those services to get the ball rolling on achieving a more permanent solution.

Requirements:

• Must not be under the influence of an intoxicating beverage or drug.
• Must cooperate with Law Enforcement Officials and/or Social Services
• Must cooperate with Hotel Management and Staff Rules
• Must not bring alcohol or drugs (other than prescriptions) in to the room.
• Must not be an offender to a crime involving violence or a crime in which a victim is going to press charges or an arrest is going to be made.

Who Qualifies?

Victims of Domestic Violence:

Victims of domestic Violence (to include their children; younger than 18 years of age) who have exhausted all other means of shelter. Or due to medically reason(s) or other underlining issues which is not conducive to them staying at a shelter or the Purple Door. For example but not limited to, a male victim would not feel comfortable going to the Purple Door and/or it is not suitable for them to stay in another shelter. There has also been cases where women do not feel comfortable going to the Purple Door. (i.e. embarrassment, uncomfortable taking children there, etc)

Victims of Violence:

If a victim of violence is not in a dating relationship with the offender, they will not qualify for shelter or services from the Purple Door. This would be used when Social Services is not readily available due to the time of day or night. And/or family lives out of town and cannot assist until the following day.

There are, in some cases, where victims to not want the help of Law Enforcement and are just seeking to escape their situation. This would create a safe environment for individuals seeking refuge to explore their options and next move.

Victims of Mental Illness:

This will be used when a mentally ill subject has barricaded themselves and it is not safe for the family to re-enter the property in the immediate future. There have been cases where Law Enforcement and Social Services become stuck in a no-win situation and the family is forced to stay at another location. In this situation the family does not have a place of immediate comfort and shelter in order to allow the dust to settle.

Displaced Person or Displaced Family:

This is when a person/family has fallen on hard times and have made every effort to get ahead but continue to fall short. In this case the person/family would be able to get a room for one night (or on case by case basis two nights) in order to have a safe place of shelter in order to work with Social Services and/or make a plan for their next move.

The other point of emphasis is: Baby Ministry and Ministry to the Pregnancy Center. Through work at the Corpus Christi Pregnancy Center and through Any Lab Test Now (on Everhart Road) we minister to moms and young families who are just starting out having babies by providing ministry, prayer cards, and other basics they need to get started.

The BOC also works with the church to make sure that 5-10 percent of all benevolences go to Mission Presbytery Support and Outreach support beyond our congregation’s walls!