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When the congregation of First Church of the Nazarene
at 1030 W. Kaley Avenue, Orlando, Florida decided to
relocate, they wanted to leave a
positive influence in this neighborhood of Holden
Heights.
The leaders of the Central Florida District Church of
the Nazarene asked Jerry and Polly Appleby to pioneer a
new project – a compassionate ministry center.
Restore Orlando, Inc. opened its doors for ministry
in June of 1992. The first Board of Directors was formed
at this time. Those first board members were Rev. Jerry
Appleby, Executive Director; Dr. William Bott, surgeon;
Larry Stutes and Don Hastings, businessmen.
The first task that Restore undertook was a community
based needs assessment through informal interviews of
members of the community. Through that assessment,
Restore discovered that the need that the community most
identified was emergency relief. Restore began providing
emergency services as a way to begin servicing the
community to add programs that lead to long term change.
The effort started with a program to provide meals for
the homeless and low income residents of Holden Heights.
The feeding program soon developed into a large scale
food distribution effort. Donated used clothing was also
made available to those having need.
In addition to the food and clothing distribution
program, an after school program called T.A.S.K.
(Tutoring After School Kids) was developed for area
elementary school age children. Eventually the program
grew and was expanded by adding R.A.P (Restore
Achievement Program) for middle school and high school
kids. In 1995, Restore opened a gym to provide an after
school recreation program for kids in a safe
environment. With time and growth they combined these
programs into what is now our After School Youth
Education Program and Mentoring Program.
From the beginning, Restore Orlando became involved
in a community restoration effort that included the
renovation of homes around Restore’s location. We
accomplished this in cooperation with NationsBank (now
Bank of America), the Parramore Heritage Foundation, and
the Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation.
Through this revitalization program twenty homes
received varying degrees of repair or were completely
renovated. The ultimate goal of this effort was to
assist local families in becoming homeowners.
Other programs and services have been added over the
years to fill other community needs and to help raise
needed funds for Restore’s growing programs and
services.
Through its many programs and services, Restore
touches many families each year. From June 1992
until June 2005, Restore served 177,000 hot meals and
distributed 49,000 family food boxes. The food boxes
alone fed over 99,000 individuals.
The After School and Mentoring program on average
assists 65-75 kids per week. In April 1998, we started a
daily meal program, designed specifically for the
children of the community. It is operated with the funds
and donations of food from several generous sources,
including Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida
and the Father’s Table Foundation. We serve a meal to an
average of seventy children per day.
In October 2000, we added an Adult Education program
to provide instruction to any and all adults in the
areas of basic computer skills, and life skills.
Volunteers are the backbone of the workforce of Restore.
From 1992 until the present time volunteers have logged
over 135,150 service hours. If those hours were
calculated at $8.00 per hour, it would equal $1,081,200
in paid labor.
Under the current Leadership, the emphasis of
Restore’s efforts is educational programs that empower
children and families to achieve independence. While we partner to
offer relief services, housing initiatives, and referral
services to those in need, these services are also used
as a way to guide people to our educational and
developmental programs. We are committed to
listening to the desires and dreams of the families in
our community,
and assist in reaching goals. It is our calling to
reinvest in the lives and development of others. |
