History of Care Corps Family Services

More than 20 years ago, a group of visionary community leaders in Fremont, Nebraska came together and made a commitment to find shelter for Dodge County’s rising homeless population. After purchasing an existing property in downtown Fremont—a motel that had been abandoned for more than ten years—these civic leaders engaged several community groups to restore and ready the shelter to the best of their ability. In 1996, Care Corps, Inc. opened its emergency shelter doors and since then, the nonprofit has continued to grow. Ten years later, in December 2006, the dilapidated motel-turned-charity was demolished. Hundreds of generous community donors had made it possible for Care Corps to rebuild on the same site—and on additional space, an adjacent parcel of land—more than doubling the capacity.

Housed in this facility today, Care Corps LifeHouse operates housing programs and services, including a 24-hour a day 60-bed emergency shelter, providing a safe and secure environment for those in need. In 2014, the board strategically modified Care Corps’ mission statement to include “near homeless,” which more accurately reflected the “at risk homeless” population that was also highly being served via case management, therapy, Life Skills programming and more. At the same time, “community collaborations” was added to the mission statement to describe the true efforts Care Corps was making—to work as a united force in order to best meet the needs of those living in extreme poverty. These changes came after “rebranding” the Care Corps name from Care Corps Homeless Shelter (or Homeless Services) to Care Corps Family Services.

History of Low Income Ministry

Low Income Ministry started in 1972 by church ladies who asked for gifts of clothing to help meet some community family’s needs. In 1983 the food pantry was added. A location was set up in one of the church basements for families to come to for help.

As the years went by the churches asked to have the ministry move to other locations. Empty store fronts and warehouses were leased to handle the greater volume of clothing. Around 1993 a permanent building was purchased in downtown Fremont. It had been a horse livery stable with a hayloft and later a car dealership. Remodeling took place and now, with further building additions, this building houses an office area, a clothing center, a clothing receiving area, a large sized food pantry, a garage for a truck, plus storage for seasonal clothing and large quantities of foods.

The Food Pantry provides access to nutritious food to low income families. It also has provided budgeting assistance, benefits assistance, community response, central navigation, employability assistance, case management, basic needs assistance, school supplies, box fans, and clothing, housewares, and hygiene items to those in need.