History
born out of kindness
Our Story
HOUSE OF HOPE OF THE PEE DEE
In 1988, Jean and Bill Fryar witnessed as many as 20 homeless people being turned away from a shelter here in Florence and were deeply troubled by the fact that there was no safe haven for them. This turned out to be a moment that would forever change both of their lives. After much prayer, Bill and Jean sold their home in Winston-Salem and moved to Florence, leaving behind friends, family, and the life they had known. Thanks to their faithfulness, a mission was ignited that would open its doors to the open-handed, homeless of the Pee Dee in 1990.
In 1991 the original men’s shelter was opened in Effingham, SC and was called the New Life Rescue Ministry. In 2006 the New Life Rescue Ministry changed its name to House of Hope of the Pee Dee and expanded our offerings to include a women and children’s home for long term recovery.
In 2015, the death of a local homeless advocate prompted her family to want to open an emergency shelter to honor her work, and they contacted the House of Hope to see about partnering with us. The Courtney McGinnis Graham Shelter opened in October of 2016.
Because the Pee Dee lacked long-term transitional housing for women and children, in 2019 the staff began to dream about tiny houses to meet that need.
In September 2020 ground was broken for 24 tiny houses, for dignified, long-term, transitional housing, initially for women and children. And in June of 2022 the first guests were welcomed into HOPE Village.
In these years, the House of Hope ministry has grown from two people to nearly 50 employees. Today we still have the same heart “for the least of these” that Bill and Jean Fryar did more than 30 years ago when they first established their ministry for the homeless in Florence, South Carolina.
We want to be the Light
at the End of the Tunnel
We believe that we have been sent to the homeless of the Pee Dee to offer food, housing and clothing, to lead them to faith in Christ, and to help them become contributing members of the body of Christ and of society.
What Are We Doing Now?
The House of Hope has always strived to listen to God for His direction in our service to the homeless. In 2018 we thought He was leading us to expand on the property of the Courtney McGinnis Graham Community Shelter, but doors were closed. So we started praying again about what He had in store, knowing that His plans are always greater than our plans. Sure enough He led us to another organization that has seen success in housing women and children in tiny houses. We knew that this was the plan that He had in mind. We have seen the excitement in our board, staff and the community. We have seen the pieces fall into place, with donations, the city permits and the construction crews. And we have seen God work in all of it.
How Will you Serve Women and Children?
The women who come to stay with us will have the opportunity to get assistance and counseling to figure out what her needs are. Some will go to school, some will get soft-skills training, some just need some time to save their money. All of our residents will be actively moving towards their future. These homes will be diginified, long-term, transitional housing.
