Saturday, May 11, 2024
Granbury nonprofit Mission Granbury has been serving the community of Hood County for 25 years — since 1998. The nonprofit organization is the largest in the county and provides nine human services programs and resources for those in need or in crisis.
The nonprofit has a women and children’s shelter in Fort Worth known as the Ada Carey Shelter for Women and Children, which provides 24/7 care to an average of 12 people per night. The shelter also provides individual and/or group therapy with licensed counselors. The organization has court-appointed special advocates serving children in the foster care system, a weekly drive-thru food pantry, an emergency assistance network, nonresidential victim assistance, senior care, veterans assistance, disaster relief and a resale shop.
Mission Granbury has had immense success and provided help and care to many around the county, but just how did this nonprofit come to be?
In 1997, 11-year-old Sarah Patterson was abducted. The news brought awareness to the community and highlighted the need for victim services in Hood County. This led to a group of concerned citizens coming together at Acton United Methodist Church to address the needs and respond to domestic violence and families in crisis.
On March 31, 1998, Mission Granbury officially became incorporated as a Texas nonprofit agency with efforts led by Vincent Messina and CPA Glenda Pirkle. That October, the first hotline volunteers began training and in November, a fundraiser was held to support the nonprofit.
In December the first crisis hotline was installed in a real estate office downtown that was answered 24/7 by volunteers including Norma Wright and Launi Webb. The same month Mission Granbury opened its first office located at 106 N. Lambert Street.
The next year, Marianne McCormick was hired to be the first executive director of Mission Granbury. The same year, the nonprofit provided the first client with safe shelter in a private family home. The organization also received a one-year grant from CASA and became the 45th CASA program in Texas.
Mission Granbury’s first office opened at 106 N. Lambert Street in a house that was donated after it was damaged in its moving process. The center later moved to 416 South Morgan Street in 2001 and launched an $800,000 capital campaign to build a permanent safe house for victims of domestic violence.
In 2004, Mission Granbury served 2,464 individuals. It wasn’t until 2006 that the Ada Carey Shelter for Women and Children opened and became an instrumental part of the nonprofit.
As the years have gone by, Mission Granbury has continued to grow, thrive and provide assistance to thousands in need over the years.
In fiscal year 2022, Mission Granbury served a little over 15,000 people. In the most recent fiscal year that ended in August, 24,000 people were served.
“Our organization has grown so much in the last 10 years, adding new programs as we discovered gaps in services and cultivating meaningful collaborations with other Hood County nonprofits to ensure we work together and blend our resources to meet the community's needs instead of duplicating services, which is never efficient,” Mission Granbury Executive Director Dusti Scovel said. “We are all so proud of the work we do and the impact that work has on so many lives. It's been an amazing 25 years, helping tens of thousands of people, and we're proud of that. Now, we're looking toward the next 25 years and making decisions that will endure for Mission Granbury to ensure we can always be here to help.”
Scovel has been with Mission Granbury for about eight-and-a-half years and is a former CEO of a medical clinic. Thinking she wanted to continue to serve in the medical field she applied for a job at Ruth’s Place, a nonprofit medical clinic. When she interviewed for the job, she was told she would be better suited for an opening at Mission Granbury, and her resume was sent over to Mission Granbury’s search committee.
“I literally had no idea how blessed I was about to be. I’ve always felt God was preparing me for this job my whole life,” Scovel said.
She added that the job is extremely rewarding. She described many different scenarios of community members thanking her for her work and helping people during times when they were struggling.
“When the phlebotomist who is drawing my blood thanks me because Mission Granbury helped her when her child was sick, and she couldn't work. When the lady in the grocery store steps closer and tells me quietly how grateful she is that Mission Granbury was there to help daughter find safe shelter when she fled an abusive situation and how she's back on her feet now, thanks to the help she received from the shelter. When the man delivering 700 pounds of pet food to be distributed shares that at one time, he was standing in line for food, and this is his way of giving back. It's those moments that matter the most,” Scovel said.
Just recently, two local residents donated a walk-in cooler to expand the food pantry and meet more of the demand. Scovel added the nonprofit has gone from serving 150 families a week to over 350. Scovel also noted the pantry has brought in close to 60,000 pounds of food to fill the shelves.
Scovel mentioned Andi Luna, manager of the food pantry, crediting her with the success of the pantry. She added Luna is always focused on collaboration with the other food pantries around the county.
Due to the cost of living being on the rise, Scovel said many families are being evicted and Mission Granbury is seeing an increase in displaced families. She said the organization’s partnerships with the Salvation Army and Hood County Children for Charities enable them to do more for families in need.
“Seeing how determined case managers are to find the resources is inspiring,” Scovel expressed while also thanking the Mission Granbury board of directors for its work.
“Our board members are actively engaged in the work we do and the decisions we make. They have diversified backgrounds but unified compassion and empathy,” Scovel said. “It’s that kind of dedication and heart that guides our direction, and right now I feel like we’re absolutely on the right track.”
Mission Granbury will host its annual gala on Dec. 9; because this is the organization’s silver anniversary, the gala will take place at the Lake Granbury Conference Center. The founders of Mission Granbury will be honored, and a special video presentation will be shown highlighting the work of the nonprofit followed by a live auction.
One special part of the event will be a seven-foot tall, custom-designed Christmas tree that will be up for auction. The tree will be donated to the Ada Carey Shelter for women and children for everyone at the shelter to enjoy. Glen Aire sponsored the purchase of ornaments and designers Brittany Taylor and Lindsie McKenzie donated their time to bring the tree to life.
The gala has been sold out for several weeks and will take place at 6 p.m.
