Grace Care Center Focuses on Creating Lasting Change
At Grace Care Center, we strive to go deeper than short-term relief – our services focus on helping families build lasting change.
Grace Care Center Values: Lasting Change
Grace Care Center is successful when every staff member and volunteer knows what we are working toward, together. That’s why we’ve focused on ensuring that every member of our team has a shared understanding of who we are and who we are committed to becoming.
When we developed our new strategic plan, we named a set of five values that shape how we show up in our community. We’ve been sharing more about each one, and why they matter.
Our fifth featured value embodies the end goal of our services here at Grace Care Center: Lasting Change. We don’t just provide short-term relief – we want to transform lives!
What Lasting Change Looks Like
But what does it mean to build lasting change? It’s the kind of change that isn’t just a bandaid or a quick fix – it renews lives, families, and communities!
Through our services, Care Center Friends are empowered with the tools and support they need to transform their lives. Not only do they get the help they need today – like food on the table or vital household items – the door is also opened to our other programs. Programs like English classes, microloans, and the Co-op, each built to help Friends take the next step…and the next…and the next on their journey towards independence.
By serving these individuals, we also build lasting change for families. We assist parents as they break cycles of poverty, creating a more stable home and future for their children. Families also become stronger through learning to navigate debt, budgets, savings, and more. And these changes trickle down for generations!
In our communities, we strive to build lasting change by creating a solution that is in it for the long-haul. Our goals focus on growing and strengthening our current services while also introducing new programs to fill the gaps our neighbors are experiencing.
We also aim to be a positive and influential voice in our community, encouraging other organizations to step forward and work together towards ending poverty and food insecurity in Central Indiana.
How We Make Transformation Possible
To build lasting change and lift families out of hardship, we focus on moving Care Center Friends along a journey that meets their needs.
Most families first visit us through our Choice Food Pantry. Here, they discover a unique choice-based model, where they are able to use points to choose the items that are best for their family. We focus on creating a welcoming and dignifying experience in the Pantry, laying the groundwork for Care Center Friends to feel supported.
Next, many Care Center Friends begin utilizing our other services to further stabilize their lives and families while building independence and that lasting change.
This often begins with vehicle assistance, where we make sure that our families have reliable vehicles to get them to work and school. Several Friends also access our Microsavings and Loans program, which provides zero-interest loans that help them avoid predatory lending and build credit while paying for critical needs.
Lifelong changes can certainly be seen during our free English classes. Here, students build both the skills and confidence to break language barriers to employment and educational opportunities.
Finally, Cooperative Services – also known as the Co-op – is where many families truly transform. In the Co-op, Friends are paired with volunteer coaches to work through financial literacy, budgeting, career advice, and more life skills.
Together, all of these services combine to provide Care Center Friends with the resources that lead to lifelong changes.
Read More About Our Values
To learn more about what Grace Care Center and the Grace Care Center Foundation stand for, read about our four additional values:
You can also read about our 2028 Strategic Plan here.
