Ministry still going strong despite change in homes
By JIMMY GALVAN

THE FORMER LOCATION for The Nathanial Home is now for sale as the home remained vacant for a time after the last house mother left. Through Community Church, though, the ministry is still active.

There may be a "for sale" sign in the front yard but the concept behind The Nathaniel Home is still alive and well.

The Nathaniel Home provides unwed and pregnant girls a place to live while learning life skills during their pregnancy.

Lisa Ellerman, pastor of Community Church, said the home is temporarily relocating to Camp His Way on Sam Rayburn.

"We have small units there that the girls can stay in and it gets them out of the environment," Ellerman said. "It's not a bad thing right now."

Ellerman said the plan is for the ministry to move back to the Jasper city limits but until funds are raised for such a move, it cannot be done.

She stressed that even though the home is now for sale, the ministry is still ongoing.

"The ministry has not been dropped at all," Ellerman said. "It was very costly to keep the house going without funding coming in."

She said the ministry is dependent on donations from the community. In recent months, there were no girls staying at the home and it remained vacant ever since the last housemother left.

Since the home was not being used, the organization that originally purchased the home decided to sell it.

Ellerman said Community Church started the idea of The Nathaniel Home maternity residence and sought community involvement in the project.

One of the requirements of housing at Nathaniel Home is that the women who don't have a high school diploma begin work towards a GED.

Part of the structure of the home is teaching accountability for the situation the girls are in. In fact, the ministry attempts to teach the girls life skills that they can use to care for their babies after they leave the home.

All the girls who stay at Nathaniel House must follow guidelines and rules set up by the group. But there are no financial obligations the unwed mothers have in order to stay in the program.

The ministry works closely with the Texas Workforce Commission who last year sent an unwed and homeless mother to-be to the home.

Ellerman said that one of the reasons a number of their clients have left the home is because of the structure the ministry attempts to bring into their lives.

"Part of the problem with the home is these girls are not ready to make changes into accountability and accept what has got them into this situation in the first place," Ellerman said. "You have to want to change and we are here as long as that is the case. We are here to help and we will continue to do that for as long as we can."