Housing

Mission and Ministry
Jennifer Ivey (left) and Carolyn Weaver relax together at the Family Reconciliation Guest House in Nashville, Tenn. The ministry provides a comfortable, safe and free place for friends and families of inmates to stay while visiting loved ones who are incarcerated. The painting on the table was created by Gary Wayne Sutton, a death row inmate whom Weaver visits regularly. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Guest house offers hope, community for inmates’ families

Visiting those who are incarcerated, especially on death row, is a complicated and stressful endeavor. Family Reconciliation Guest House in Nashville provides a comfortable, safe and free place for friends and families to stay.
United Women In Faith
Liturgical dancers from the Seda Negra/Black Silk Dance Company perform during the United Women in Faith Assembly 2026 in Indianapolis. The dance represented the search for home. The assembly also included a workshop where participants learned how United Methodists’ work on housing might offer lessons for other grassroots efforts.  Photo by Mike DuBose, United Women in Faith.

How churchgoers can start a grassroots campaign

The experience of United Women in Faith addressing the affordable housing crisis in Indiana offers lessons for other United Methodists trying to make positive change in their communities.
Social Concerns
The Rev. Will Ed Green (right), senior pastor of Silver Spring United Methodist Church in Silver Spring, Md., shows part of the church’s facility to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. Moore visited the church Feb. 23 as part of efforts to promote affordable housing. Photo by Alison Burdett, Baltimore-Washington Conference.

State gives big boost to church housing plan

Maryland is providing crucial tax credits for Silver Spring United Methodist Church’s $88.2 million affordable-housing initiative. The growing church is among many U.S. congregations repurposing property for good.
Local Church
Unhoused women wait for the doors to open on the morning of March 28 at First United Methodist Church of Austin, Texas. Each Friday, the women are able to get showers, pick out new clothing from donations the church has collected, have a meal or enjoy the luxury of sleeping in a safe environment. Once a month, they can get their hair washed, cut and styled. Photo by Andrea Turner, UM News.

Church provides pampering for unhoused women

Each Friday is a special day for 30-40 women without housing in Austin, Texas. That’s when they are treated to a spa day ministry hosted by First United Methodist Church.

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