Central Fort Bend Chamber Celebrates Grand Opening of their Newest Member, Fort Bend Hope  

Fort Bend Hope along with the Central Fort Bend Chamber held a Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting in downtown Rosenberg on Wednesday, October 25, 2017.  Business owners and community members received a tour of the facility, enjoyed great food and, most importantly how they can get involved in helping the community.  Fort Bend Hope is a 501(c)3 Nonprofit partnership between multiple churches in the Richmond-Rosenberg area. The Board of Directors and volunteer teams are made up of pastors and congregants from churches across multiple denominations. Their vision is to see individuals, families, and communities empowered to pursue positive change in their neighborhoods.

Pastor Parker Zimmerman of Faith United Methodist Church in Richmond explained how Fort Bend Hope got its start, “Over the past four years, our ministries have taken us to local parks, cafeterias, coffee shops, parking lots, and classrooms in the Rosenberg and Richmond areas.”  The Pastor continued, “The church formed a 501c3 nonprofit in order to collaborate with non-church partners, accept donations, and most importantly, invite ecumenical participation.”  Pastor Zimmerman thanked his board members and the generosity of Fort Bend County, “With the help of generous donations from our congregation and the residents of Fort Bend, we were able to open a new ministry called Fort Bend Hope.”  Pastor Zimmerman then introduced Ruth McPhail-Ubaldo as Fort Bend Hope’s Director, “We are so blessed to have Ruth as our director, and she is the contact for the community if there is anyone who has questions or wants to get involved.”

Programs at Fort Bend Hope include after school mentoring program which includes a snack, homework help, reading skill-building as well as arts and crafts.  This October, Fort Bend Hope will begin its first class of a year-round English development program where students will cover fundamentals of the English language (ESL), practice reading and writing, and join conversation groups.   In addition, Fort Bend Hope is excited to partner with Catholic Charities to host a Fatherhood Initiative Course!

If you would like more information about where you could plug in as a leader, volunteer or participant Fort Bend Hope can be reached by: Phone: 281-341-8200 x 104, Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/FortBendHopeCommunityCenter/ and http://fortbendhope.org

The Central Fort Bend Chamber is a 106 year old non-profit membership organization dedicated to creating a strong local economy where businesses can prosper. The Central Fort Bend Chamber advocates for over 1,000 local businesses led by a volunteer board of directors who are dedicated to sustaining Fort Bend County’s quality of life, and keeping our community and economy vibrant.

For more information on the Chamber or its programs, call 281-342-5464 or visit www.CFBCA.org.