Outreach Spotlight: Eden Village

Eden Village of Wilmington is building a community for those who are chronically homeless and disabled. While they are still in the construction phase of building 31, 500 square foot tiny homes, 17 are in the final stages and will be filled within the next few months. All 31 tiny homes have residents eagerly waiting to fill them.

Eden Village was started in Springfield, MO by David and Linda Brown. Both work in the medical field and saw a desperate need for healthcare in the homeless population, specifically in the disabled community. Their solution was to create Eden Village. Tom and Kim Dalton brought Eden Village to Wilmington. Both are also in the medical field, and after working on a housing project in Kenya on a mission, they came home with a drive to help their community. This is when they discovered what was being done in Springfield. Eden Village of Wilmington was then started in February 2020.

The goal of Eden Village is to create a community for those who are chronically unhomed, as Julie, the community coordinator said, "homelessness can be lonely, we don't want our friends to feel lonely." Within this community, individuals will have their own tiny home that is permanent, costing $300/month. It is a gated development, with cameras on site and fingerprint entry into the community.

Eden Village is not a part of the Help Hub. Therefore, in order to build this community that is completely run by volunteers (alongside two paid employees) all skill sets are needed! Eden Villages strives to meet people where they are, meaning whatever your talents and expertise are, a friend at Eden Village could benefit from it. Julie made an important point when talking about volunteers, "we really want the community to change how people see homelessness in Wilmington. We can learn as much from our friends experiencing homelessness as we can give to them."

There are currently 100-125 unhomed folk in Wilmington who meet Eden Village's criteria. Because of that, they are looking for land for two more Eden Villages, plus land to build a temporary campground that has an overnight shelter for those who either aren't ready for Eden Village or don't fully fit their criteria.

To learn more about Eden Village, and their mission to build a community for those who are disabled and unhomed, please visit their website at edenvillagewilmington.org or call Julie at 910-200-7571.