New Information For Donors Page and Current Board List

Paul is a good looking kid-- over 6 feet tall and doing well in school-- at least now...

We found him at age 13, abandoned by his mother when her drug habit spiraled and she left town for Houston. She certainly didn’t want the responsibility of caring for Paul, and there was no one else in the family interested in taking him in…

He lived off the kindness of friends, sleeping on their couches--eating what food they would share--until he fell into the same pattern he learned from his dysfunctional mother… to find companionship in a gang.

If Our House had been built at that time, Paul would have been welcomed with open arms to a teen- specific shelter. Our partnership with BCFS will provide for youth who are forced into finding their own way. There they can access transitional services that will help them connect to area resources, including counseling and job training.

Paul wants to be a good kid; he wants to be liked. In fact, he took the symbolic step to permanently disconnect from a local gang…

Paul burned his gang flag! He now keeps a corner of the burned fabric in a frame along with his Certificate of Baptism, as he believes he has been baptized by fire into his new life.

Thanks to the staff at Our House, Paul is now 16 and working a summer job. We are proud to say he only missed one day of school this last year… all because a person like you felt the Christian compassion to provide an opportunity for a better life…

Last year, more than 200 youth in the Big Country found themselves without a fixed, regular or adequate nighttime residence… and we know there are many more who have not “self-identified” to a school official. Others would step forward—if they knew a place existed where they would be safe while they worked to become self sufficient.

We are building just such a place!

Our facility, made possible with City of Abilene Community Development Block Grant funds, will be built to the West of Lincoln Middle School and behind First National Bank of Baird on S. 1st in Abilene. Our House will be a place where youth can beat the odds.

Our House staff found James at age 16. He missed a lot of school and shared his mother’s habit of using drugs. He wanted to quit, so he left home when his mom refused to stop.

James wanted a better life…. We were able to find a safe place for him to live with regular daily visits from our staff.

On her first visit to his new apartment, his probation officer cried… tears of joy! She had never seen him in a clean place, looking so happy.

James’ struggles are not over, but he is learning important life skills to keep him from “being in the wrong place at the wrong time.” While trying to separate from his old life, he was beaten so badly he needed reconstructive surgery... Our hope is he will not have double vision for life…

Individuals such as you made that surgery possible. Wonderful people like you helped both Paul and James… and you can provide opportunities for others…
Our House began as a vision over three years ago. Many of us now on the Board of Directors worked in professions or had experiences that made the need crystal clear-whether they live in Abilene or throughout the Big Country…Our youth need Our House.

It’s exciting to see this dream become a true reality… to partner with one of the top organizations in the State of Texas who has proven experience in helping teens and young adults transition successfully back into the community.

Your prayers, your support and your dollars have brought us to this point… but we are not finished. We still need to raise funds to finish building and furnishing the Our House shelter.

You won’t find these youth sleeping under bridges, but they do exist right here in our community.

Blessed by your support,
Randy Perkins
Chair, Our House
Board of Directors

Nancy Capra
Past Board Chair, Our House
Board of Directors

Please make your check payable to : CCDC-Our House
Mail to: PO Box 2282, Abilene, TX 79604
Your gift is tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.
We will send a receipt for your records.

Become an Our House Sponsor.
If you would like to make a direct donation:
Please make checks payable to: CCDC - Our House
Mail to:
PO Box 2282
Abilene, TX 79604

Please call 325-437-3373 (MWF 2pm-5pm) if you would like more information.