Magdalene Fayetteville already has its first resident.
The Rev. Lowell Grisham, rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, said the local woman is recovering. “She escaped an incredibly abusive situation,” he said. “A handful of people have created a circle for her, and they are slowly adding other people to the mix.”
St. Paul’s leaders and members hurried to help and currently are in the process of setting up a nonprofit program and transitional-living residence to help return to society women who have been the victims of human trafficking, prostitution and addiction. The Magdalene Fayetteville program will follow a model of the Magdalene House started nearly 20 years ago in Nashville, Tenn.
Positions on a community board to guide Magdalene Fayetteville have been filled, and the group is in the process of filing papers to become a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, Grisham said. And many folks from the community have traveled to visit other Magdalene homes and to attend workshops guiding the establishment of new ones.
“Everything seems to be coming together in an orderly way — although maybe a little faster than I thought,” Grisham said.
Grisham said Friday that the board is in the process of buying a property already zoned as a multi-family residence, and a search for a director might begin soon.
A timetable — or even the dream of one — remains unknown, however, dependent on renovations to the property and financial situation.
“As soon as we put everything together in a strong, orderly way,” Grisham said.
“The place will be lavish like I and the other women here enjoy,” assured Regina Mullins, a Magdalene Nashville graduate who has remained clean and sober for 19 years.
Organizers and board members also are considering a “social enterprise” similar to the Thistle Farms company in Nashville, Grisham said. Local businesses and the Walton School of Business at the University of Arkansas are helping explore the opportunities.
“We are working on a couple of prototypes of product I believe we can sell both through a brick-andmortar storefront and online,” he said.
And, he added, many already have pledged their time and effort as volunteers.
Financial resources for Magdalene Fayetteville also must be sustainable. A seed grant of $350,000 secured the purchase of the property, Grisham said, but the board is still in the process of determining an operating budget.
“Every time we’ve put something out there, doors open,” he continued. “God has been with us, guiding us. Whenever we’ve jumped off the diving board, there’s always been water underneath.”
“I’m happy for Fayetteville and all the Magdalene communities,” Mullins said. “They help us get clean. There’s nothing for women like us. God gave Becca (Stephens, Magdalene House founder) a vision to work with women like us.
“I’m glad she obeyed, and I don’t have to go back on the streets and sell myself for a roof over my head, for clothes and food.”
“The key to this healing process is love,” Grisham said. “Consistent love on an ongoing daily basis. ‘Love heals’ is the mantra (of Magdalene House).”