The Faith Mission and Faith Refuge facilities in Wichita Falls will soon start some major renovations and new construction.
Executive Director Steve Sparks said the $5.5 million projects should start in May.
For Faith Refuge, which provides shelter for women and children, it will mean an 8,000 square-foot addition to the facility on Hatton Road.
“We’re going to add 14 new rooms for moms with children. That’s the area we seem to run out of room the most,” Sparks said. “When we built Faith Refuge back in 2012, we built it because women and women with children were the fastest growing population in the nation. It’s just continued to be an increasing need over the years.”
Sparks said the refuge has eight rooms for mothers with children, and those are filled every night.
For the men’s shelter on Travis Street, Sparks said the plan is to renovate the dorm, bathroom area, shower and chapel.
“We’re adding a parking lot for volunteers, and we’re going to redo the front of the building to make it more secure,” Sparks said.
He said the Travis Street location is 40 years old and hasn’t had much attention over the years.
Sparks said bids have just gone out on the project, and he hopes to have work completed in a year.
He said money for the project has been raised through fundraising efforts over the past year and a few grants and is about 80% complete.
Sparks said to goal of the mission and the refuge is to provide Christ-centered programs and services that lead the homeless and addicted toward self-sufficiency.
“We want to be a temporary help for them so they can get back on their feet and take care of themselves,” he said.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Faith Mission, Refuge to get $5.5M renovation project
Reporting by Lynn Walker, Wichita Falls Times Record News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
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