Host congregations provide hospitality to guest families by providing meals, overnight accommodations, and a friendly face.

Support Congregations provide volunteers to a nearby Host Congregation to help support their team.

Each Host and Support Congregation has a volunteer who coordinates hosting activities for their congregation. Volunteer Coordinators work closely with the Case Manager and the Operations Manager to meet the needs of families.

These volunteers assist families when they are ready to move into their new homes. Volunteers gather donated furniture and other household supplies, transport the items, and help with the move-in process.

Assist with Day Center needs such as organizing donations, assisting families, or providing coverage when staff is unavailable. Additional assistance is always needed on the weekends and holidays.

Family Promise needs many volunteers who are interested in assisting with special events or serving on a Board committee. Committees include: Development and Marketing, Box City, Program Housing, and Operations/Governance.

Mentors build a committed relationship with a past family, and help them define goals, connect with community resources, and recognize their own strengths.

What is a typical week at a host congregation like?

During the week there are approximately 50 slots for volunteers. Some congregations have a different volunteer for each slot; others have volunteers take on multiple slots. Volunteers come from the host and support congregations, and are assigned duties by the Volunteer Coordinator.

Sunday

• Family Promise van arrives in the afternoon with beds to be set up in a designated area.
• Families arrive at the Host Congregation Sunday evening. The rooms for the families and the common area have been set up prior to their arrival.

The guests will have their bedding and personal belongings.

Weekdays

• Wake up is about 6:00am. (Depending on school drop offs and individual schedules)
• Breakfast is usually put out around the same time as wake up and is grab and go style, typically cereal or other convenient foods.
• The van leaves the Host Congregation about 7:00am (again, depending on school drop off times) Children are dropped off at school/day care and/or families are dropped off at the Day Center. The van typically arrives at the Day Center about 8:00am.
• If the parents do not have a job, they work with the Case Manager at the Day Center to seek employment, housing, and other resources to help them regain their independence. The Day Center has bathrooms with showers, laundry facilities, and other necessities to prepare for the day. Families complete their assigned chores.
• The van picks families up at the Day Center to return to the Host Congregation. The van typically arrives at the Day Center about 5:00pm.

Saturday

• Families may be able to sleep in a little on weekends as there are no school drop offs. (Typically wake up time 6:30am to 7:00am).
• Breakfast is served about 6:45-7:00am. Hot breakfast is sometimes offered on weekends if volunteers schedules permits.
• The van leaves the Host Congregation after breakfast for the Day Center.
• Families do what families typically do on the weekends.
• Families complete their assigned chores.
• The van returns to pick up families at Day Center at about 5:00pm to return to the Host Congregation.
• A volunteer remains at the Day Center throughout the day.

Nightly

• Families settle in, and meet the coordinators and evening volunteers.
• About 6:00pm, dinner is served. Families and volunteers share a meal together. Families are responsible for their children, and help with clean up and chores.
• After dinner, volunteers fellowship with families. Play games, help with homework, watch videos, or just talk.
• Food for lunch is available, and parents make sack lunches for their families for the next day.
• Adults turn in around 10:00pm and children/teenagers at appropriate earlier bedtimes 8:00pn or 9:00pm. The curfew for families is 9:00pm at the congregation unless they have a pre-arranged work schedule and need to arrive later.
• 2 volunteers will spend the night at the congregation with the families in separate rooms.

The Following Sunday

• Wake up is about 6:00-6:30am. Families pack up.
• Breakfast is served about 6:45/7:00am. Typically cereal or other convenient food (hot breakfast is sometimes offered on weekends if volunteers schedules permits)
• The van leaves the Host Congregation prior to Sunday Services for the Day Center.
• A volunteer remains at the Day Center throughout the day.

… and the next Host Congregation week begins.


Becoming a Host Congregation

What facilities does Host Congregation need to have available for guests?

Facilities need to include a lounge/common area (with seating, tables, TV), an eating area, a kitchen, bathrooms, and sleeping accommodations. Ideally, congregations provide a separate room for each family, such as a classroom. If that isn’t possible, a fellowship hall or other large room can be divided by partitions to provide privacy.

Our building is in use almost all the time. How will we find the space?

Churches and synagogues are busy places with many demands on their space. Rarely does a perfect space exist. Hosting almost always means making some scheduling adjustments for activities and meetings during the congregation’s week in the rotation. For example, several times a year, a Bible study group that meets on Tuesdays may need to move their meeting to a different room.

What are the insurance implications in participating as a Host Congregation?  Does the congregation have to amend its policy?

Each Family Promise must carry general liability insurance. Congregations are usually covered by their own property and liability policies because Family Promise is considered to be an outreach ministry; a regular activity of the church like a youth sleepover or a Friday night supper. Most congregations find they do not need extra insurance to be hosts. To be certain, each congregation needs to contact its insurance provider.