Oct 28 2009
Sacramento’s Buzz Oates Charitable Foundation Makes 40-Resident California Home for Troubled Girls a Reality
Thanks to the lead gift and operational support of the Buzz Oates Charitable Foundation, combined with primary donations from the Stewards Foundation and the Frank Ramos Family and the efforts and contributions of many other businesses and individuals, Mercy Ministries of America today announced the Grand Opening of its first West Coast home, located at 1896 McClain Drive, Lincoln, California. This approximately $6 million, 40-resident facility, just north of Sacramento, will begin accepting residents in October 2009 and will celebrate with a public Dedication and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on November 7th at 5pm and an Open House November 8th from 2pm until 6pm.
Nashville, Tenn.-based Mercy Ministries of America is a Christian residential counseling program that serves girls and young women, ages 13-28, who face a combination of life-controlling issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, addictions, depression, eating disorders and unplanned pregnancies. Since 1983, Mercy Ministries’ free-of-charge program has served more than 2,000 girls and young women with its combination of best-practice clinical interventions and faith-based counseling.
The Sacramento-area home will be Mercy Ministries’ fourth home in the United States, but first on the West Coast—a fact that Mercy Ministries’ founder and president Nancy Alcorn says is important. “So many girls from California have sought our help over the years, but they have always had to travel across the country to find a Mercy Ministries facility. Before the construction of the California home, Mercy Ministries in St. Louis was our closest home to California. Now we will truly be able to serve girls from the West Coast in their own backyard,” Alcorn said. “I am so grateful to Buzz Oates, a generous man with a huge heart, and his foundation, The Buzz Oates Charitable Foundation, for giving such a large gift to make this home for hurting young women possible.”
The Buzz Oates Charitable Foundation—a Sacramento-area non-profit focused on faith-based initiatives—became acquainted with Mercy Ministries after its namesake, entrepreneur and businessman Buzz Oates, expressed a desire to fund a home for women with unplanned pregnancies.
Kathy Fairrington, Oates’ daughter and a Foundation board member, eventually spearheaded the project. Fairrington said: “It made sense for us to partner with an organization that had the specific passion and expertise of Mercy Ministries. After spending time getting to know Nancy Alcorn and touring the ministry’s Nashville operations, it became clear we were on the right track with an organization that would connect with my father’s goals and honor his vision through its operations.”
Oates added, “This project’s completion has been a dream of mine. I’m excited to be part of the Mercy Ministries organization and grateful for Kathy’s careful oversight. This home for troubled girls and young women also wouldn’t have been possible without the support and contributions of numerous friends and business partners.”
Source: https://themercyministries.org/