House of Grace Helping the Community

House of Grace’s Pastor, Joe Dunlap, is looking for ways to help people in the community.

Dunlap plans on opening a women’s shelter to help get people off the streets when they fall on hard times. He met with the county commissioners Monday morning to hear ideas from them about how to go about this process. And after recommendations Dunlap plans on working with the re-entry coalition to help people.

"We don’t want to reinvent the wheel or something it’s doing," Dunlap said. "We want to utilize them. It’s not about House of Grace; it’s about our community and the ones that pull us together and begin to network together and to help each other."

Dunlap said he became a pastor to help people and make a difference in their lives. Another project that House of Grace is working on is providing for the needs of teenagers.

"Our phone is ringing off the hook for kids that are needing help from the ages of 13 to 16, and they’re not calling for iPads, and iPods and cell phones," Dunlap said. "They’re calling for gloves and hats and things to keep them warm this winter. It’s what the kids are looking for, so we’re trying at the House of Grace to do what needs to be done to affect our community."

He told the commissioners he wants to make House of Grace a 24 hour church and not just one that’s open for a few hours each week.