Northwest Assistance Ministries surpassed its $5.3 million fundraising goal and plans to break ground Aug. 11 on a new building that will house its resale shop and job-training classes, NAM President and CEO Carole Little said.
The new two-story, 30,000-square-foot building will be constructed behind NAM’s headquarters at
15555 Kuykendahl Road, Houston.
The new facility will save the organization $240,000 in annual rent costs for the space it leases at FM 1960 and Kuykendahl Road. The second floor will include space for NAM’s training programs and additional space for community events, such as the organization’s annual job fair in October, which drew over 1,000 participants last year, Little said.
“We’ve outgrown the capacity for large events at this building,” she said. “The new building will assist us in executing those events more safely.”
NAM launched its Roots and Wings capital campaign in 2014 to raise funds for the new facility, just before the oil and gas markets began to decline, she said.
“We were very fortunate that the community really rose up to support us,” Little said.
A total of $5.37 million was raised for the building. Construction is expected to wrap up in August 2017 with a tentative opening date for the shop in November 2017.
The new building will provide 350 parking spaces, compared with the existing building’s 200 spaces,
Little said.
NAM was formed in 1983 by 10 interfaith congregations in the Northwest Houston area, which collaborated to provide assistance programs in response to a growing need in their communities. It now includes over 40 congregations and a $10 million annual budget, serving 24 ZIP codes, Little said.
The organization’s core mission is to help people in the region meet their basic needs. Its programs include a nutrition center, a family violence center, a pediatric clinic and transportation assistance.
Little said NAM also provides job training through partnerships with the Lone Star College System, area school districts and employers to help individuals living on minimum wage transition to higher-paying permanent employment.
NAM training programs—which will be held at the new facility—are open to the public and do not require participants to reside in its service area for assistance programs. Most programs last eight to 12 weeks.
Many programs focus on health care jobs, but NAM recently has included a stronger emphasis on job placement for women in technical fields, Little said. For example, Centerpoint Energy has a need for linemen—a job which can pay over $60,000 annually, but historically has few female applicants, she said.
“That is what we are looking for—to help people find an entry-level job that is above minimum wage that can create a career ladder,” Little said.
