Next Steps The Colony

A great community blessing event coming this Friday!

A huge THANK YOU to the amazing volunteer team from Heartland Church! ❤️🌿

On Saturday, they spent their morning serving at our Next Steps homes, working in nearly 100-degree Texas heat to help make our yards beautiful. Their willingness to sweat, serve, and love our residents in such a practical way did not go unnoticed.

A well-maintained home does more than improve curb appeal—it creates an environment where healing, dignity, and hope can flourish. Your hard work helps make our houses feel even more like home for the men and women walking the journey of recovery.

We are incredibly grateful for your servant hearts, your smiles, and your commitment to loving your neighbors through action.

Thank you, Heartland Church, for making a lasting difference. We are better because of partners like you! 💙

A quick update... ❤️

Because of your generosity, we were able to provide an additional week of housing and groceries for our friend at the men's house. Your financial support made that possible, and he is incredibly grateful.

He is working hard, holding down two jobs, and taking the next steps toward stability.

Right now, he is actively looking for a room to rent in the Plano area so he can be closer to work. If you know of a safe, affordable room or have a lead, please contact Pamela at 214-636-1207.

He also has an ongoing need for Uber rides to and from work. One simple way to help is by sending an Uber gift card digitally through Amazon. If you'd like to help in this way, send me a text, and I'll send you the information you need to purchase and text an e-gift card.

Thank you to everyone who gave. Your generosity didn't just provide housing and groceries—it gave someone the opportunity to keep moving forward.

Food blessings are coming!

FREE FOOD distributed twice in July!

📅 Saturday, July 18
🕙 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
📍 Friendship Baptist Church
4396 Main Street, The Colony (Enter off Cougar Alley)

🍞 UPDATE: the Friday, July 31, food blessing will be held from 8-11 a.m. at The Colony High School parking lot (4301 Blair Oaks Dr., The Colony).

Volunteers make these events possible! Volunteers help distribute food, greet families and make this event welcoming for everyone. Interested in volunteering? Email [email protected] to sign up.

**Before Sunday, we need our community's help.**

This week, we welcomed a new resident to Independence House after a referral from the NTX Community Food Pantry.

Despite working both a full-time job *and* a part-time job, he was still unable to keep up with the rising cost of living. When his car broke down, the little stability he had disappeared. He found himself living in his vehicle until it was no longer an option. His family stepped in to help with a hotel room for as long as they could, but that was never a long-term solution.

What we see is someone who is incredibly kind, respectful, hardworking, and determined to move forward. Like many people, he also faces personal challenges that make having a stable, predictable environment especially important. A safe place to come home to isn't just housing—it's the foundation he needs to keep working, stay healthy, and continue rebuilding his life.

**Before Sunday, we need to raise $1,840 to give him the stability he needs to continue his journey.**

Here's what that covers:

🏠 **$1,200** provides one month of safe, stable housing.

🛒 **$400** covers groceries that meet his specific dietary needs.

🚗 **$240** provides transportation to and from his full-time and part-time jobs while we work toward a long-term transportation solution.

Every dollar helps remove a barrier and gives him the opportunity to focus on what matters most—working, healing, and building a better future.

If 74 people gave just **$25**, or 19 people gave **$100**, we would meet this goal together.

# # # Looking Ahead

Transportation is one of the greatest barriers our housing guests face. A reliable vehicle would allow us to help residents get to work, medical appointments, recovery meetings, interviews, grocery stores, and other essential appointments while they rebuild their lives.

We're asking our community to help us make this happen.

* **Help us raise the funds** to purchase a reliable vehicle for Independence House and cover the insurance and fuel needed to keep it on the road.
* **Or, if you have a connection with a dealership, business, or individual who may be willing to donate a dependable vehicle, we'd love to have that conversation.**

A single vehicle would impact not just one person, but every resident who comes through our housing program for years to come.

If you're able to help today, please consider making a gift of any amount.

❤️ **Donate here:** https://nextstepstc.org/donations/

If you know someone who might be interested in donating a vehicle or partnering with us, please send us a message. We'd be grateful for the introduction.

Thank you for believing that everyone deserves the opportunity to rebuild their life with dignity, stability, and hope.

Zeffy Donations © Next Steps The Colony · A 501(c)(3) non-profit. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, s*x, gender identity, s*xual orientation, age, or disability. Everyone is welcome Built with care in The Colony, TX

Happy Semiquincentennial, America!

Yesterday, everyone was talking about the couple who climbed a skyscraper with a giant sign.

It got us thinking...

Some messages are too important to keep to ourselves.

Recovery is possible.

Every day, people make the decision to climb out of addiction, rebuild relationships, restore trust, and create a future they never thought was possible.

Those are the stories worth sharing.

If you know someone who needs to hear this today, share this post. You never know who might need the reminder that there is hope.

❤️ Recovery is possible. One step at a time.

Our team recently helped a widow in our community by staining the ramp to her home. We were glad to assist with this project and are very grateful to all who helped bring this to completion!

We're taking a short pause next week.

Next Steps will be closed June 15–19 to give our staff and volunteers time to rest, recharge, and spend time with their families.

Serving our community is a privilege, and taking time to refresh helps us continue doing that work well. While our doors may be closed for a few days, we're grateful for the opportunity to come back renewed and ready to serve.

We will reopen on Monday, June 22.

Thank you for your understanding, your encouragement, and your continued support of our mission. ❤️

— Pamela and the Next Steps Team