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October Ministry Spotlight - Everybody's Place - Hope Lives Here
Joy.
Every time I sit down to write one of these stories, I want to begin with the words, “This month, I have the joy of sharing about…”
And that’s because it really is my joy to share these ministries with you.
Connecting with, serving alongside, and telling the stories of ministries in our community that are loving people like Jesus is joyful. And our time with Everybody’s Place was exactly that.
When I reached out to Cathy Jo Lopez, Director of Operations at Everybody’s Place, and asked how KJIC could serve the neighbors at Agape Village, she shared an opportunity to host a block party. I immediately knew two things: it would be a great way for us to connect with the families there, and we couldn’t do it alone.
And I LOVE collaborating!
There is something special about inviting people to come together and use what God has placed in their hands to serve someone else. Collaboration creates opportunities to make a greater impact, build new relationships, and remind us that we can always do more together.
So we started reaching out.
Mindy Robertson and our friends at The Harbor jumped in—not only bringing their men’s group to serve, but generously providing the My Dyes tie-dye experience for the families. Chad Ellis with Milo’s Tea came alongside us, Downtown T-Shirt Factory in Alvin generously donated shirts, and Rae with My Dyes went above and beyond to make the experience extra special. God brought together a wonderful group of people, and what resulted was a blessing not only to the neighbors at Agape Village, but to every one of us who had the opportunity to serve.
But before I tell you about the block party, I want you to know why Agape Village exists.
Everybody’s Place is a community of 16 beautiful homes in Galveston County providing long-term housing for families facing homelessness.
Paul and Tracey Clines once thought the next step in their lives would be overseas missions. Instead, God began opening their eyes to a mission field right in their own community.
In a video sharing the story behind Everybody’s Place, Paul explains that they knew homelessness was an issue, but like many of us, they thought of it as a “big city” problem. They hadn’t really considered the number of families in their own community struggling to find safe, secure, dependable housing.
As God opened their eyes to the realities of poverty in their own neighborhood of Bacliff and they began asking questions and learning more, they discovered just how great the need was.
Homelessness doesn’t always look the way we expect it to.
We may picture someone sleeping on a park bench or in a car, but for families, homelessness can look like moving from motel to motel or sleeping on a friend’s couch. Families can become trapped in a cycle of paying more for a temporary place to sleep than they might pay in rent, while never being able to save enough for a deposit or get far enough ahead to secure something permanent.
Everybody’s Place wanted to help change that.
In 2022, the ministry purchased just under two acres and transformed an existing building into The Hub, providing community, office, and classroom space. Then, in 2024, construction began on Agape Village—a neighborhood of 16 homes, including five three-bedroom homes, five two-bedroom homes, and six one-bedroom homes.
Why?
The Clines say it simply:
“Because loving your neighbor still matters, and children shouldn’t have to sleep outside.”
One of those three-bedroom homes is occupied by the Navigator Family. The Stewarts live right there in Agape Village as missionaries, offering a regular, present source of support and helping cultivate something that goes far beyond housing: community.
In December 2025, the first four families moved into Agape Village. Four more joined the neighborhood in March.
As I prepared to share this story with you, I asked Paul what ministry looks like now that families are actually living there.
His answer stuck with me.
He compared it to preparing to become a parent versus actually bringing your first baby home from the hospital. You can plan, research, prepare, fundraise, build, and try to anticipate what will be needed—but then real life begins.
There has been a lot to learn.
And I loved hearing that Everybody’s Place has been willing to learn slowly and intentionally. Rather than rushing to fill every home, they chose to pause and focus on loving the families already there well. They spent the summer building community, strengthening relationships, and learning how to better support the families God had already entrusted to them.
When we visited, you could feel the fruit of that decision.
One of my favorite things Paul shared was what a gift it is to be part of the everyday lives of these families. So often, when we serve someone, we only see a glimpse of their story. But when you live in community together, you get to witness the ordinary moments, the hard days, the celebrations, and the growth.
And you begin to see what stability can do.
When a family no longer has to spend every day simply trying to survive, there is room to think about tomorrow.
There is room to dream.
Parents can pursue a GED. They can find jobs where they feel valued. Children can experience consistency. Families can begin making plans rather than simply responding to the next crisis.
There is room for hope and genuine transformation.
And the vision of Everybody’s Place doesn’t end with Agape Village.
Through the conversations, research, and data gathered while developing the ministry, another need became clear: safe, affordable short-term housing for individuals and couples experiencing homelessness.
Good News Community, another development of Everybody’s Place, is planned to help meet that need. The vision includes 24 well-built, safe cottages where one or two people can have a place to reset, heal, and begin developing a path toward long-term, stable housing. The community is also planned to include private showers and restrooms, laundry facilities, a kitchen, on-site case managers, and a live-in navigator/caretaker.
It’s another reminder that sometimes loving our neighbor begins simply by seeing a need that has been there all along.
And then we got to love some neighbors ourselves.
Our back-to-school block party was SO much fun.
We pulled up with the KJIC tent and music, Milo’s showed up with lemonade, and the men from The Harbor got to work grilling burgers. And thanks to The Harbor, there was something extra fun waiting for the families: they provided a tie-dye experience with My Dyes!
Rae rolled in with the My Dyes Airstream trailer completely decked out as a mobile tie-dye studio, and she went above and beyond to make the day special. Once everything was ready, we started knocking on doors and inviting neighbors into the beautiful courtyard.
Before long, kids were running around and the space was filled with laughter.
Thanks to an incredibly generous donation from Downtown T-Shirt Factory, every neighbor received a special Everybody’s Place shirt to tie-dye. Printed on it were the words “Hope Lives Here” and Romans 15:13:
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
And My Dyes added even more generosity to the day by providing bandanas for all of the volunteers to tie-dye, too.
Everyone came out.
We ate. We laughed. We threw the football. Kids climbed on the play structures. We got to know one another.
And we dyed a LOT of things.
For me, though, there was another layer to the day.
I knew a couple of the residents from my time serving in a single-parent ministry. It is hard to put into words the joy I felt seeing them there—watching their kids play, seeing them connected to their neighbors, and knowing that they now have a safe and stable place to call home.
Sometimes the impact of a ministry can be explained with numbers, houses built, or programs offered.
And sometimes you see it in a mom you knew years ago, standing in her own neighborhood while her child laughs and plays nearby. Or you get to snag a picture with a young lady whose family has already transitioned out of Everybody’s Place and into their next step—but she came back for the block party because this is still her community.
That is hope you can see.
And I think that’s part of what makes Everybody’s Place so special. It isn’t simply about providing a house. It’s about creating a place of stability, belonging, and community focused around Jesus where families can take their next steps—and where relationships can remain even after they do.
There are so many ways to be part of what God is doing through Everybody’s Place. From tutoring and babysitting to yard work and handyman projects, there are ongoing opportunities to come alongside the families at Agape Village and simply love your neighbors well.
I’m grateful for Paul, Tracey, Cathy Jo, the Stewarts, and everyone who has said yes to the work God is doing through Everybody’s Place. I’m grateful for The Harbor, Milo’s Tea, Downtown T-Shirt Factory, and My Dyes for each bringing something different to the day and showing what can happen when a community comes together to serve.
And I’m grateful for you—our KJIC listeners and supporters—because your prayers and generosity allow us to go beyond the airwaves and be present in moments like these.
What a joy it is to see what can happen when God’s people notice their neighbors, bring what they have, and love them well.
Hope really does live here.
To learn more about Everybody’s Place, their vision for Agape Village and Good News Community, or opportunities to serve, visit https://www.everybodysplace.net/.