It’s volunteer gardening day at Community First! Village in East Austin, and Shaeneeka and I are kneeling in flower beds by the chicken coop, planting tomatoes. She makes a hole with her spade, and I plop in a tomato plant. We find a snail and feed it to chickens on the other side of the fence, telling them it’s escargot. Shaeneeka’s good conversation distracts me from the stench of bird poop. She shares what it’s like to be a “neighbor,” the term for “resident” in this 51-acre master-planned community that roughly 390 formerly homeless men and women now call home.
“This place has so many amenities to it, and it also gives you an opportunity to grow, and not just with Christ but within yourself, too,” she says, her smile big and sincere. “I love it. I feel like I can be myself here, but they also help you become an even better you.”
Community First! Village opened in 2015 as an extension of Mobile Loaves & Fishes, a nonprofit food truck ministry that feeds homeless individuals in Austin through volunteers and donations. There were 6,206 homeless people in Austin as of August, up from previous years. Mobile Loaves & Fishes founder and CEO Alan Graham envisioned a community of affordable housing that could create a supportive environment for rebuilding stability in residents’ lives. The development is a vast spread of tiny homes with front porches, along with gathering halls and an outdoor movie theater. A regular slate of offerings at Community First! Village includes farmers markets, movie nights, a library, a salon, elderly care, art and jewelry making, church services, bingo, and open mic nights.
Community First! Village has been so successful that it’s currently expanding: 51 more acres are under construction across the street from the current site and 76 additional acres are planned near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. People across the globe now come to symposiums at Community First! Village to learn how to bring similar developments to their cities.
“When you volunteer with us,” Graham says, “not only are you serving the men and women who call the village home, you are able to connect with our neighbors—human to human, heart to heart—while building meaningful relationships.” mlf.org