Firm Foundations of Hope

12/12/2025

We offer a heartfelt "Thank You!" to each and every one of our followers on this page. In the future, you can stay up to date with Firm Foundations of Hope by subscribing to our monthly e-newsletter at firmfoundationsofhope.org to continue to receive stories, pictures, updates and more about the Firm Foundations of Hope community.

At the first of the year, our presence on social media will end. Our pages might remain on Instagram and TikTok, but won't be updated or monitored (this has already happened on TikTok), and our page will be deleted because the personal page it's connected to is going to be deleted.

Why would we make this decision?

1. As a small ministry, one of our precious resources is time. We want to communicate effectively, and efficiently. We've decided that fewer mediums and more depth is more effective.

2. We believe that we're more effective at longer-form communication, such as our newsletter, website, and longer-form videos. We can better tell our story in these ways. While we have no immediate plans to continue longer-form video, we are keeping our YouTube channel up and may consider doing more demonstration videos in the future.

3. We've monitored interaction and responsiveness to our different methods of communication, with social media impact being minimal. We know that this isn't impossible to change, but the time commitment needed to do so is high.

4. Perhaps most importantly - following research from people such as Dr. Cal Newport and the work of Andrew Laubacher of Humanality, we can see the negative effects social media has had on society and have chosen not to be a part of it. Lessened focus, attention spans, negative effects on mental health, distraction, and a loss of productivity across our society can largely be attributed to social media, driven by algorithms designed to be addictive. While there is something to be said for being a light in the darkness, and there certainly is some great content by gifted influencers on social media who are using it for good, we have decided as a person-to-person ministry that this is not our sphere for evangelization, and that we don't want to be a part of what we see resulting from the mass use of social media. We also don't want to require any of our members to have to use it to post content.

Certainly not everyone will agree with all that I've shared, and that's fine. I may write on the matter further in an eventual blog post on firmfoundationsofhope.org But for now, please subscribe to our newsletter and visit our website! On the main page of firmfoundationsofhope.org scroll down until you see 'Subscribe' and enter your email address. If you can't find it, send us a message (by Dec 31!) with your email address. Thank you for following us! Please continue by our newsletter.

Firm Foundations of Hope is committed to spiritual revival and neighborhood revivification on Detroit’s east side. Through Jesus Christ our King who inspires hope. We seek holistic person-by-person transformation and empowerment of residents by affording the dignity of work to the structurally une...

12/02/2025

"Firm Foundations of Hope rescued me."

Worker Tony shares his story of being impacted by working on the crew with Firm Foundations of Hope.

The stories of our workers are varied - but all come to us hoping for something better.

Please consider donating in support of our mission - helping people climb in life and in faith. Give online at firmfoundationsofhope.org/donate (which gives multiple ways to donate) or bit.ly/climbingffh

12/02/2025

"Firm Foundations of Hope rescued me." Worker Tony shares his story of being impacted by working on the crew with Firm Foundations of Hope.

The stories of our workers are varied - but all come to us hoping for something better.

Please consider donating in support of our mission - helping people climb in life and in faith. Give online at firmfoundationsofhope.org/donate (which gives multiple ways to donate) or bit.ly/climbingffh

12/02/2025

We're grateful for our partnership with St Joseph's Helpers and their impact on the people and communities they serve.

12/02/2025

Climbing Higher with Hope

Your gift makes a difference. Together, we’re rebuilding the Kingdom of God in Detroit through hands-on work on critical home repairs, preparing previously unemployed persons for the full-time workforce, and sharing the love of Jesus Christ through our street ministry, AlleyGroup, and through equipping more individuals and churches to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Our year-end Climbing Higher with Hope campaign will provide missionary support; Christmas gifts, meals and basic needs for the families of our work crew members; and contribute toward upcoming work projects.

Thanks to those who have already donated, we've raised $9,788 of our $25,000 end-of-year goal so far.

To donate, visit bit.ly/climbingffh or firmfoundationsofhope.org/donate to support our mission today.

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank each and every donor, volunteer, and prayer warrior who supports us. God bless you!

12/01/2025

Genevieve and Anton from FFH joined with the group from St. Matthew's and friends to go out into their neighborhood sharing the love of Jesus! We had a great time and were truly blessed to join the team. Next Saturday, back to our neighborhood (unless the Holy Spirit sends us elsewhere)!

11/23/2025

Days 1 and 2 of a wheelchair ramp build - almost there! Pics of the finished ramp coming after Monday's work.

11/22/2025

Firm Foundations of Hope builds up the Kingdom of God in Detroit through revitalization and missionary efforts. We are committed to spiritual revival and neighborhood revitalization.

To date in 2025, Firm Foundations of Hope has:

-Completed 30 home repair projects in Detroit, Highland Park and Hamtramck, including 5 wheelchair ramps and other projects for safety and accessibility.

-Trained and mentored 15 entry-level workers in our transitional work program, with two so far being hired on for further work and others preparing for a career in the trades.

-Led our first workshop to equip members of a local church to minister to people on the street and share the Good News of Jesus Christ in everyday life

-Fostered and grew Christian community through our entry-level neighborhood Bible study group, and other evangelization and discipleship offerings.

Will you help us change lives in our Detroit community by making a year-end gift?

Our Climbing Higher with Hope fundraising goal is $25,000, which will allow us to build on this year’s accomplishments and better serve our community.

To donate online: Visit https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/climbing-higher-with-hope or scan the code
Or send a check: Firm Foundations of Hope at 3920 Van D**e St. Detroit, MI 48214.
Thank you!

11/22/2025

We're grateful for those who participate in our offerings for discipleship and prayer, at our weekly AlleyGroup, our monthly evening of prayer as we co-host adoration every 4th Monday at Most Holy Trinity, and for those we meet during street ministry. It has been a blessing to focus more on these aspects of our ministry. We couldn't do it without supporters like our Hold Sponsor Riley and Pearson Financial Services. Thank you!

11/19/2025

Join us in prayer at Most Holy Trinity on Monday, November 24 at 7pm (and every 4th Monday). We've had a great group the last couple of months.

It's a time of Eucharistic adoration by candlelight, mostly personal prayer in silence, although we begin and end together, praying for vocations to start off, and ending with night prayer from the Liturgy of the Hours (if that's new to you, no worries, we walk through it together).

Come and be renewed.

11/18/2025

Check out the latest from FFH in our November Helping People Climb newsletter at https://bit.ly/hpcnov25

If you don't already, please subscribe to our newsletter by sending a message with your email address, commenting (and we'll message you for your email), or signing up on our website (scroll to the bottom left of the main page of firmfoundationsofhope.org).

Thank you to each and every one of our followers on social media. Going forward, our newsletter will be monthly and our presence on social media will be minimized, to streamline our communications effectively given the time and resources we have available. Please make sure to subscribe!

Check out this US Letter designed by Genevieve Kocourek.

11/17/2025

We haven't posted much of our work lately, but here are a few pics of just some of what the FFH work crew has accomplished over the past month. The pictures of the door show before and after on a door that would not open or close tightly and therefore wouldn't lock. We end up doing a lot of door repairs or replacements for improved security. This one, on an enclosed porch that had shifted over time, needed some adjustments on both the frame and near the strike plates. It was tedious work but resulted in a door that closes and locks securely.

Also pictured, Martin and Tony mix concrete for a small slab to support steps that we replaced on a house after a demo project (see earlier posts). We're especially grateful for the support of our sponsors, including platinum sponsor Eastern Michigan Distributors, which help make these projects and the growth in the workers that results, possible by their support.

We're currently gearing up for a couple of wheelchair ramps, replacing steps to a basement, a back porch repair, and more.