HOUSTON – The West Houston Assistance Ministries launched its THRIVE campaign to raise $1.2 million. The money will be used to help 5,000 families in the next year.
“Our mission is to empower and transform neighborhoods, lives,” Rev. Mark Brown said.
CEO of WHAM Rev. Mark Brown, Harris County Commissioner for Precinct 4 Leslie Briones and Houston City Council member Tiffany Thomas are calling on Houstonians to lend a helping hand by donating to the organization’s THRIVE Campaign.
“We’ve all had difficult times in our life. We know someone in our families or a neighbor who is struggling. I believe deeply we can combine our collective strength and collective resources. We will continue to drive this region forward,” Briones said.
“Houston is one of the most philanthropic cities in America. There is no reason that we can’t continue to demonstrate a massive response outside of a disaster for basic needs for Houstonians,” Houston City Councilmember Tiffany Thomas said.
The campaign is being launched as a result of the high need observed by the organization due to inflation, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a drop in donations to match the need.
The campaign will focus on providing financial stability, basic needs, empowerment resources and services to support families and individuals in the city.
Rev. Mark Brown said more families are in need of help.
“In my own life, I saw that gas is going up. The price of food is going up. Inflation continues to be a challenge for us or within the community. With our neighbors, they are struggling and they have to make a choice between, ‘Do I have food? Do I fill my car up with gas, or do I pay my rent? When you get to that point, it becomes incredibly sad and difficult,” he said.
Every week, WHAM has a drive-thru food distribution to help those in need. However, many families have been affected by the pandemic, groceries are expensive and on Wednesday the feds raised the interest rate again.
“These added pressures on low-or fixed-income households are becoming unbearable to the point of having to come to WHAM for relief and help,” Rev. Mark Brown said.
Anwar and Nicky Smith moved to Houston from Nashville and said WHAM helped them get back on track.
“We went from not having a place to call home to having a place to call home,” Nicky Smith said.
“They put us in a hotel for a month and then they gave us another month. When we found an apartment, they just helped us out for two months of us being in the streets with a family of six and we have an elderly grandmother. It was a blessing for us to get that stability,” Anwar Smith said.
Becoming a donor could help in a big way and provide families like the Smiths with the skills they need to THRIVE.
“Even though things didn’t go as planned, God knows what He is doing, and He brought us to WHAM and I’m grateful for it,” Smith said.
If you would like to become a donor, go to whamministries.org/thrive.
READ MORE STORIES ON FAMILIES IN NEED OF ASSISTANCE