The Key to Eden Village

My wife and I recently travelled to Wilmington, NC to spend a few days with the Eden Village there, which has been open for about a year now. One of the reasons we came on board with Eden Village is that they are helping other cities, such as Tulsa, towards developing their own community serving the chronically homeless.  I’m sure not smart enough to do this on my own, so we’re learning from others in the same battle who’ve “been there-done that”.

Wilmington has a community of 31 tiny homes, community center, and garden area. For this past year, they’ve had one person leave on his own, one passed away, and three have not had their lease renewed due to violation of community rules, specifically illegal drugs.  By my math, that’s about an 85% success rate in their first year, and that’s pretty good in my book. This is hard work, but they are helping folks and having success. They have a strong staff and leadership and a strong volunteer base.

One of the many things I learned while at Wilmington is the importance of a strong, consistent, and caring Home Team for each resident. So many of our homeless friends simply don’t have the family and support system we all need. So, before we move in our first 9 new neighbors this summer, we need to secure a Home Team for each of our folks.  And then as we complete 36 more tiny homes by Christmas this year, we’ll need to secure 36 more Home Teams for our new neighbors.

We’ll have some training and support for everyone involved in Home Teams.  We’ll require a commitment of at least one year towards a new neighbor. No special skills are required, just a servant’s heart and willingness to be a friend for someone who really needs one.  

This homeless deal is a community problem, in need of a community response. You can help in many ways, including being the friend of someone who really needs one. Contact Marc Clayton our new Community Director at marc.edenvillatetulsa@gmail.com for more information.