As Flint faces many challenges, hope is its driving force. At Crossover Downtown Outreach Ministry, the goal is to give hope and be respectful and caring to those who cross their threshold, or anyone else who asks them for help.

Dayna Copeland, 25, is learning how to be a better father, husband and communicator thanks to a Genesee Intermediate School District Head Start program called Fathers And Men Engaged (FAME). As a participant in the program, led by Mike Kildee, Head Start Family Engagement Coordinator, and James Patrick, Family Engagement Advocate, Dayna has changed his outlook on parenting.

Exciting things are happening at St. Luke’s N.E.W. Life Center as it continues to live up to its mission statement of providing life skills, education and workplace training, empowering women and men to become self-sufficient. The Center, which opened in 2002, was co-founded by Sister Judy Blake and Sister Carol Weber with the initial mission of helping at-risk women become self-sustainable. “But there were a lot of men out there and they wanted a program too,” says Sister Judy. So, two years ago, N.E.W. Life began offering a program of employment preparation for men.