While college students were packing up dorm rooms to return home, one Robertson County native was finding home again. 

Disabled after a fall at age 7, Joseph never learned to read or write and eventually served time for selling drugs. Once out of prison, Joseph took care of his elderly parents until their deaths. 

“Things began to get hard,” Joseph says in his garbled tone, “and I started living in my truck, surviving the best way I could.” 

Four years passed. Then Joseph found My Father’s House Mission (MFHM)— a cold weather shelter for the homeless in Springfield.

Joseph immersed himself in MFHM life, attending church, getting baptized, getting sober, and eventually getting to move into a new home at the end of May this year. 

The cream walls and clean carpet of his apartment are a welcome contrast to his truck cab. Joseph chose to move beyond his past and grasp the hand of support, declaring himself happy and blessed.

“My Father’s House Mission is my new family,” he says grinning.

“We call Joseph our poster child,” says Karen Mann, MFHM Board Member. “Joseph knows he’s made bad choices in life but now is living a full and happy life. He’s one of many stories from My Father’s House Mission.”

Joseph’s story is all too familiar for about 12 out of every 10,000 people in Tennessee according to www.endhomlessness.org. 

The winter months punch an icy fist at those without a home. My Father’s House Mission is a warm hub of hope nestled within Robertson County. Located at 101 10th Ave East in Springfield, this cold weather mission serves the unhoused community with a place to tuck away from the elements.

Operating for the past six winters, My Father’s House Mission, not to be confused with My Father’s House in Nashville,  is run by board members who organize volunteers to staff the facility during occupancy. 

“This past winter, we had an eight-day time span of severe cold,” says Karen. “We had a volunteer on watch 24/7 and then a Fire Marshal to patrol the building every 30 minutes.”

Commitment like that comes from people who recognize the humanity in everyone’s story, no matter if your home is made of boxes or bricks. “The truth is,” says Karen, “even though we serve the homeless, without God, none of us would have a home.”

MFH Mission doesn’t close its doors when Spring starts to simmer. Their mission is to help Robertson County residents get off the streets and off drugs. 

They partner with other local organizations, such as United Way and Job Force Essentials, as the need arises. 

But as Joseph says, “You have to help yourself before anyone else helps you,” Karen echoes that thought, “Until they get that mindset, you can’t force people to change.”

When they are ready, My Father’s House Mission is waiting. If you’d like to learn more about their organization, follow them on Facebook or check out their website. 

If you know anyone affected by homelessness, reach out to MFHM at 615-992-5247.

“A lot of people don’t know we exist,” says Karen. “We are here and ready to help give a hand up, not a hand out.”