It has been eight years.
Eight years since the mustard seed of an idea for Jeremiah Community took root in the hearts of our downtown churches. I know exactly how long it’s been, because the mustard seed of my second child was growing in my belly at the time.
It’s been a long gestation period. Long enough for some to question the project’s viability. Long enough for others to demonstrate just how much faith is behind this thing.
But the moment has arrived. And we are moving at warp speed.
As I write this, Atlantic Builders, local trade partners, HomeAid National Capital Region, and students fromtheOberle Academy’s Career and Technical Education Program are finalizing plans for a momentous feat: Over the course of just 72 hours, these partners will work side-by-side to build a Jeremiah Community prototype home.
Mark your calendars: During the week of Sept. 7, Watch our model home come to life, live online. We’ll share the exact start date of the build as soon as it’s locked. Then join us in person for an open house at the Oberle Academy at 404 Willis St. in Fredericksburg on Sunday, Sept. 13, to see the finished product.
More than a construction project, it’s a powerful demonstration of what can happen when an entire community unites around a shared purpose. Every wall raised and every nail driven represents hope made visible.
We often say that people become homeless when they run out of relationships. They overcome homelessness when the relational power of a community refuses to let them face life alone. Jeremiah Community is what that belief looks like in practice—a neighborhood built not only with lumber and nails, but also with friendship, dignity, opportunity, and love.
Eight years ago, Jeremiah Community was just a dream. A scrappy group of churches had an idea that we could be a more compassionate community if the very least among us had somewhere to live, something to do, and someone to love. We didn’t know what we didn’t know. But God was calling us to more than we could ever ask or imagine.
The people, the skills, the prayers, the resources have emerged in God’s time. And the kin-dom necessary to build AND be Jeremiah Community has been revealed.
Every meaningful movement reaches a moment when a vision begins to stand on its own foundation. This is one of those moments.
Don’t miss it!
– Dr. Meghann Cotter
Executive Servant-Leader
Micah Ecumenical Ministries