The Tribune

By ANNELIA NIXON

Tribune Business Reporter

anixon@tribunemedia.net

AFTER failing to secure Crown Land for its long-delayed Hope City Homeless Shelter, Great Commission Ministries is seeking to either purchase land or secure a private donor to advance the project while searching for an inner-city facility to serve homeless people it says have been overlooked by both the church and the government.

Bishop Walter Hanchell, founder of Great Commission Ministries, said the organisation has lost confidence in successive administrations’ willingness to help provide land for the initiative aimed at helping the poor and homeless.

The shift comes after plans for Hope City, a proposed 100-bed homeless shelter on Carmichael Road, stalled amid a dispute over a half-acre parcel of Crown land that had been granted to Great Commission Ministries.

According to Bishop Hanchell, another party later claimed ownership of the same property, triggering a legal dispute that ultimately forced Great Commission Ministries off the site. Despite discussions with the Office of the Prime Minister and assurances that the matter would be addressed, it remains unresolved.

“Out of frustration, we have shifted to our Plan B,” Bishop Hanchell said in a statement. “At this point, we have lost hope in both administrations that have ruled our nation and will not be seeking any land for the Bahamian people from any government.”

The setback is part of what Great Commission Ministries describes as a 36-year struggle to obtain land for social development projects. Bishop Hanchell said Great Commission Ministries first applied for 10 acres of Crown land in 1990 during the administration of former Prime Minister Sir Lynden Pindling and has continued pursuing similar requests under multiple government administrations.

“Numerous churches, organizations and individuals have received large parcels of Crown grants for various purposes,” Bishop Hanchell said. “We are indeed happy for their acquisitions but are still confounded as to why Great Commission Ministries has been unsuccessful in obtaining a Crown grant to care for the poor from any PLP or FNM administration over the past thirty-six years.”

Great Commission Ministries currently provides an average of 600 hot meals daily, distributes grocery assistance to families in need and operates emergency shelters for homeless men, women and children. Bishop Hanchell said demand for services has surged in recent years as more Bahamians face housing insecurity and economic hardship.

“Our emergency shelters are constantly filled with the growing amount of persons being evicted from their homes,” he said.

Bishop Hanchell said homelessness has reached critical levels in New Providence, with some families living in vehicles, abandoned buildings and public spaces. He also pointed to a growing population of chronically homeless individuals living on the streets, many of whom struggle with mental health challenges. In response, Great Commission Ministries is searching for a facility in the inner city to establish a rescue mission specifically for street-dwelling individuals.

“We have noted that a new type of homeless persons have emerged in recent years and have become visible throughout our communities,” he said. “These are men and women who live on our streets and roam like animals. They have no place of abode and have been neglected and rejected by both the state and the church.

“We have failed these precious souls who have fallen through the cracks. No government has provided any shelter for street people to protect them from the elements or intensely cold weather.

“Great Commission Ministries is currently searching for a facility in the inner-city  to accommodate such underprivileged persons. A rescue mission for street persons will be established. Many of these persons are mentally challenged. Some are dishevelled, extremely dirty and have not had a bath in a very long time. We must all do better with this.

Despite operating homeless shelters for nearly 40 years, Bishop Hanchell said the organization has never received direct government funding for shelter operations “from any administration” relying instead on private-sector donors, churches and individual supporters. He said his ministry does however, receive a “small” annual government grant that helps support its feeding programme.

He added: “With the level of poverty that we see everyday in our country, it is obvious that the Department of Social Development is vastly underfunded in the same way that Great Commission Ministries has been underfunded for almost forty years.

“We requested an increase in subvention for many years but our cries for some reason have fallen on deaf ears. We are grateful to the private sector, a few churches and compassionate individuals, who financially support us faithfully, however because of the sharp increase in clients coming to us seeking food and shelter, we have faced many challenges in recent years.

Looking ahead, the organization is seeking financial contributions, transportation resources and land to revive Hope City.

While critical of the lack of progress over the years, Bishop congratulated the current administration, congratulating the Progressive Liberal Party on its election victory and welcomed the new Minister of Social Services, Barbara Lynn Cartwright. He expressed hope that social services initiatives will receive greater attention in the future.

We welcome the new Minister of Social Services and pray that her compassion reaches all in need throughout the Bahamas,” he added.