Building Hope Together
In last week’s Doing a New Thing Fund story, we shared about Bay View, Sturgeon Bay’s community garden. This week we’re excited to share yet ANOTHER project and partnership they have going on to make an impact on their community!
Bay View Lutheran Church is one of seven congregations participating in the Interfaith Housing Coalition, who are passionate and focused on finding solutions for families experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity one family at a time
The need for affordable housing in Door County is significant. In 2025, the local school district reported to the coalition that 30 children were experiencing homelessness. Project Board Member and Bayview Member Nancy Ruff shares, “Our community has no shelters or safe places for families to go. Churches have been putting individuals up in hotels, which is quite costly these days, but there is nowhere for families to go. “
An unexpected opportunity arose when an unused standalone clinic building became available from Door County Medical Center. Rather than seeing an empty building, hospital leaders and coalition members saw possibility. The coalition was given the opportunity to dream about how to use the space, eventually they wondered: what if this space could be transformed into a home?
Together, the Interfaith Housing Coalition, and Door County Medical Center then connected with Habitat for Humanity to convert the former clinic into a three-bedroom transitional home that will provide temporary housing for families experiencing housing insecurity.
Throughout the past year, volunteers have been hard at work remodeling the space. Walls were repaired, rooms reimagined, and a former medical facility steadily became a place where a family can experience safety, dignity, and hope. What was once a clinic is being transformed into much more than housing. It is becoming a bridge toward stability and a tangible sign of a community that refuses to look away from the challenges facing its neighbors.
Leaders from Bay View recently reached out and shared an update on the project — the home is nearly complete and they will be connecting with a family soon! Additionally, they will be starting a second home rehab this coming year. The Moravian church purchased an older 1800s home, and the coalition will begin raising funds soon to get that project started. Nancy shared that these are all “small steps to get families with housing insecurity on their way to becoming self-sufficient.”
The Interfaith Housing Coalition demonstrates what can happen when congregations move beyond individual efforts and work together toward a common goal. Through collaboration, creativity, and faith-filled determination, these seven churches are helping create lasting solutions for some of the most vulnerable members of their community.
We give thanks for YOUR mission support, which is what makes the Doing a New Thing Fund possible! Your gifts are part of this beautiful collaboration that is making Christ known to those in the Sturgeon Bay community!