City dignitaries from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, along with Gov. Greg Abbott, gathered March 26 to join Lisa Rose and Deborah Lyons, founders of The Gatehouse, to officially open the Gatehouse at Grapevine, a supportive living community for women and children who are fleeing or attempting to recover from a dangerous situation, carrying a debt load or are in need of counseling. When completely constructed the community will house 96 families and include a general store, counselling centers and a community center. The first women and children arrived in April. The Gatehouse in Grapevine is the first facility of its kind in Texas. It offers abuse victims housing for up to 30 months rather than a month or less like many shelters. Gov. Abbott said he believes The Gatehouse at Grapevine will be the catalyst that sparks more supportive-living communities in Texas and throughout the nation. "When you see facilities like [The Gatehouse] that open up, it does generate that level of excitement as well as a vision for others," Abbott said in a news conference after the ribbon cutting. "We do hope that this serves as a catalyst for other people and organizations around the entire state of Texas to create something like this." For more information or to make a donation, call 817-522-4871 or visitwww.gatehousegrapevine.com.