Hope Center becomes a reality: Entire community to benefit from building

(Update: Article is updated to show there will not be an open house on April 25 as previously reported. Also corrects date on OHCE)

Pam Dobbins can’t help but smile as she gives a tour of the new Hope Center on the 1000 block on S. 8th Street.

Once a church then a storage building, the building has been totally revamped into a family resource center.

“When we put in these family homes, we were just transitional for a year for women,” Dobbins said. “And then when they got their kids back, they would go on. But then we realized they need more support and encouragement and help once they get their children so we built the family (duplexes).”

Then she made a realization that education, support and encouragement for families as a whole was different than just for the women coming out of rehabilitation or prison in the Heather’s Hope program.

“We needed to offer different kinds of education and support because they can live here two or three years,” Dobbins said.

Currently, there are 10 mothers and 12 children living in the homes.

“Even the children need some education and support and encouragement at their level,” Dobbins said. “We didn’t have any place to do that. The program got so big with so many women and children we couldn’t meet in one spot without asking a church if we could use their building.”

Dobbins wanted to be able to do that on the organization’s own property, so the Hope Center was born.

“It’s a resource for families where we can offer education,” Dobbins said. “We bring in people like Potts Family Foundation did Tuesday night and we did some training. We’ve shown the resilience video. We have Oklahoma Family Network coming and doing parenting classes. We have the OHCE coming and they’re going to do meal prep and show how to stock your kitchen and do cooking classes that helps the women learn how to establish a healthy, safe, good home. We’re doing some family things and we have some budgeting classes.”

Wichita Mountains Prevention Network is coming to have a pizza and ice cream party for sixth, seventh and eighth graders and have a talk about the dangers of vaping on Thursday at 1 p.m..

“(Hope Center) is geared on life skills, and education and how to strengthen yourself and your family,” Dobbins said. “Yes, we will focus on the women in Heather’s Hope but it will be open to the community. If we have, say a class of 24 people, and there are 10 girls from Heather’s Hope, we can fill up the other spots from the community.”

Red River Technology Center has expressed interests in coming and doing some adult education classes.

They bring people in from outside organizations to teach classes instead of doing all the classes themselves because they want classes to be done by professionals who are equipped and tranied to meet the needs.

“We’ve made it a place where we can offer education but we will also will have information about all the resources we can possibly find in the community,” Dobbins said. “If we don’t offer it here, we want to be able to tell you a place where you can get it.”

They already have some committed partners to help them, but they are always looking for more.

“We’ve reached out to churches offering for them to get on board and support it,” Dobbins said. “In the summertime we’re going to do some special stuff with the children and I’d like to invite youth groups to come and help us with it like maybe do a day of sports of a day of art or a day of music and invite teenagers to come and help us.”

The building has much more than just a classroom. There is a full kitchen, offices, smaller classrooms and a children’s playroom.

“(On April 10) OHCE clubs are hosting a shower for us to furnish our kitchen. Our drawers and cabinets are almost completely empty,” Dobbins said.

The Hope Center took on a life of its own and grew to be larger than even Dobbins had hoped for.

“There are so many people wanting to offer their resources to help families,” Dobbins said. “Now, we have a place to come together and do it. Our goal is to use this as a place to unite people in our community to come together and help each other. We’re going to have what we call a parent advisory committee that is going to be parents investing back into parents. Parents helping parents. Building the community.”

She had no idea when she started Heather’s Hope 12 years ago this is the point where the organization would be.

“I don’t know what I thought when I started it other than let’s help homeless mothers,” Dobbins said. “And it grew and grew. And then when we got this property, this church building was on it. In my mind I thought someday this might be a community center where we could have things for women. And then when the doors opened up for this to be a family resource center, that’s when I realized this is what it needs to be, not just for Heather’s Hope, but for all families.”

Local OHCE are inviting the community to participate in a “Let’s Stock the Kitchen,” shower for the Hope Center at 1008 S. 8th Street, Comanche. It will be a come and go event from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on April 10.

They are registered at Walmart (www.walmart.com/registry/er/8911A622-E41A-4AFB-B1OE-BCCC0B17929A) and Amazon (A.CO/SS4P9LR)