Waco nonprofit seeks Giving Tuesday donations for sexual trauma housing project
WACO, Texas (KWTX) - A local nonprofit is hoping that Giving Tuesday will help them reach their goal of funding phase one of a project to house victims of sexual trauma.
Lovely Village, formerly known as Jesus Said Love, will soon start construction on a safe housing program for mothers and children near downtown Waco. While they’ve raised more than $2 million, they still have $500,000 to go.
Emily Mills and her husband Brett are the co-founders of Lovely Village.
“We are a healing community of survivors of sexual trauma and for the past 20 years we have been serving survivors and their children, and we are upon the biggest adventure yet. We are opening residential for survivors and their children,” Mills said.
Phase one of Lovely Village is a fourplex near downtown Waco that can hold a maximum of four single mothers and up to nine children or eight single women.
The goal of the village is to take in women and make it so that when a woman leaves, she is trained and ready to move on to the next phase of her journey, leaving with savings to make a house or car down payment, job and leadership skills and a living wage job secured.
The land and building, which needs renovation, were donated by Magnolia Foundation.
“The apartments were gifted to us. They are in proximity to our headquarters. Magnolia Foundation was generous, did not need this property and they knew we were interested in a housing project for survivors of sexual exploitation, trafficking and trauma and donated it to us,” Mills said.
Lovely Village got a financial boost when the City of Waco granted the nonprofit $630,000. The original request was $500,000.
“The really cool thing that happened is there were more funds available,” Mills said.
Construction on the project should start at the beginning of the year.
The Mills say they’re hopeful Giving Tuesday will bring them closer to their goal.
“It’s Giving Tuesday and if you are interested in helping our community flourish by standing with survivors of sexual trauma exploitation and trafficking, give today,” Mills said.
If you’d like to learn more about the housing project or donate you can log onto lovelyvillage.org.
If you’d like to mail a check, you can send it to Lovely Village at P.O. Box 523, Waco, TX 76703.
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