{"id":222188,"date":"2026-03-26T23:22:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T23:22:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/222188\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T23:22:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T23:22:07","slug":"280-acre-community-redefining-how-north-texas-supports-its-most-vulnerable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/222188\/","title":{"rendered":"280\u2011acre community redefining how North Texas supports its most vulnerable"},"content":{"rendered":"

About five miles off Interstate 45 in Ferris, a new vision for addressing homelessness in North Texas<\/a> is beginning to take shape.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 280\u2011acre development, called Our Community, is the latest effort by Dallas\u2011based nonprofit Our Calling<\/a> to provide long\u2011term stability for people who are elderly or disabled \u2013 a group the organization says is often overlooked.<\/p>\n

“Holy ground,” pastor says<\/p>\n

Pastor Wayne Walker, CEO of Our Calling, describes the land as sacred ground.<\/p>\n

“If I was a little bit more informal, I would tell you to take your shoes off,” Walker said. “Because where you’re standing is holy ground. We’ve seen God do a miracle here.”<\/p>\n

Walker says the project is designed for individuals who have few, if any, options.<\/p>\n

“We’ve recognized that there is one group that no one will take, and that’s people who are elderly and disabled,” he said. “These are someone’s aging parents who need a safe place to go. To create that space \u2013 and not just talk about it, but now open it \u2013 is a beautiful thing to see.”<\/p>\n

A path from crisis to stability<\/p>\n

For some residents, the path to this community began in crisis. Anita and Kenneth Johnson arrived at an Our Calling inclement\u2011weather shelter three years ago after a dispute with a landlord left them without a home.<\/p>\n

“We went from my big old cozy bed to sleeping on the concrete,” Anita said. “That was tough.”<\/p>\n

The couple credits prayer \u2013 and the support they found through the nonprofit \u2013 for helping them reach a place of stability.<\/p>\n

“Thank you, Lord,” Kenneth said, reflecting on the moment they walked into their new home. “This is ours. We just don’t know how blessed we have been.”<\/p>\n

A neighborhood built for connection<\/p>\n

Everything about the small\u2011home neighborhood is designed to foster connection. Homes face each other. Shared green spaces encourage gathering. Children play outside while neighbors talk across porches.<\/p>\n

Abraham and Anna Jenkins are part of that design. They’re not formerly unhoused \u2013 they’re what the community calls “missionals,” families who live on\u2011site to provide consistent support and friendship.<\/p>\n

“They know us, they know our kids, and we love them,” Abraham said.<\/p>\n

Anna says the opportunity felt like a calling.<\/p>\n

“We spent years talking about how important community was,” she said. “Then this was dropped in our laps \u2013 like, ‘Are you ready to live out what you’ve been talking about?’ And we said yes.”<\/p>\n

Plans for hundreds more homes<\/p>\n

The first phase includes 25 homes, but the long\u2011term plan is far larger: up to 500 homes, along with medical facilities, a grocery store, a coffee shop, and other services designed to create a fully functioning neighborhood.<\/p>\n

Walker says the project wasn’t driven by a major donor or a sudden windfall.<\/p>\n

“It was because God himself said this is the time and this is the place,” he said. “And we’re so excited to be here today.”<\/p>\n

In:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"About five miles off Interstate 45 in Ferris, a new vision for addressing homelessness in North Texas is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":222189,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[8230,430,27,29,28],"class_list":["post-222188","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-ellis-county","tag-north-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222188","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222188"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222188\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/222189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222188"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222188"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222188"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}