Serve Denton Launches Serve Lewisville
(Here’s what you need to know)
Serve Denton is a one-stop-shop making it easy to find help in Denton County. Its mission is to partner with nonprofits to help make their services more accessible for people in need.
Over the past 10 years, their success, growth, and impact have been inarguable. Their nonprofit partners are flourishing making finding help and getting resources in one location easier than ever.
With Serve Denton’s method and execution so successfully implemented, and when it comes to opening similar nonprofit centers, there’s no use in reinventing the wheel.
Serve Denton has a history of making bold initiatives in the hopes of bettering the community members in need. They’ve done it with grace, integrity, and accountability, and have the data that points to the huge impact their initiatives have made.
Because of Serve Denton, Denton is a stronger and healthier community than it was a decade ago.
And it’s because of this very reason that Serve Denton is taking their next step toward making an even stronger Denton County.
Serve Denton is stepping out in an exciting first-time initiative to launch a Serve Lewisville Center scheduled to open on April 1, 2023.
Serve Denton’s vision in executing the Serve Lewisville Center is to create a nonprofit center that enables Lewisville to double its capacity to meet the community's critical needs in the next five
years and promote collaboration between nonprofits, churches, and civic organizations. This has been a long-time need that will be a warmly welcomed asset to the Lewisville community.
Their mission is simple: partner with the Lewisville community to help more people in need.
With that being said, you’ve probably got questions…
And the good news is–we’ve got answers.
To scratch that inquisitive itch, here’s the Who, What, When, Where, and Why’s you need to know:
How will Serve Lewisville work?
For any nonprofit center to be successful, a collaboration between local nonprofits is a must. It’s this factor alone that has been the backbone of success for Serve Denton’s nonprofits and clients alike.
So similarly, in order to serve the Lewisville community well, creating this network of collaboration and synergy will be the driving force behind the Serve Lewisville Center.
“We’re not just building a center…we’re building a framework of collaboration to help strengthen relationships between nonprofits, churches, and civic organizations to ultimately serve the Lewisville community members,” Serve Denton CEO Pat Smith said.
There’s been a long-time need for fluid collaboration and partnership of services in the Lewisville community, and Serve Denton is excited to provide a solution to the problem starting with 5 targets of need.
Serve Lewisville will be focusing on 5 areas of concern:
Adult healthcare
Mental health
Rental and utility assistance
Affordable childcare
Food
Many of the people needing help require a variety of resources to help get them back on their feet. But when clients have to visit multiple locations to get the wrap-around services they need, getting the help they require becomes that much more difficult.
A lack of collaboration between nonprofits isn’t just a disservice to the community members–In the long run, it actually becomes one of the main challenges in a nonprofit’s inability to thrive.
By launching the Serve Lewisville Center, partnering nonprofits will have the opportunity to grow their networks, holistically serve their clients, and better execute their missions–all while saving money on rent and shared spaces. Similarly, clients have been able to receive wrap-around services in one easy location without the hassle of chasing resources down at various nonprofit buildings over town.
Who’s going to be there?
Glad you asked!
MHMR, (Serve Lewisville’s largest partner with 7 offices) will provide mental health services.
Co-Care Team, City of Lewisville will partner to provide mental health and law enforcement services.
Giving Grace and Catholic Charities will partner to provide rental and utility assistance, case management, and wrap-around services
North Central Texas College will partner to provide adult education and workforce training
And the Women and Infant Children (WIC) Store will partner to provide food
And if that weren’t enough, they are also going to be forming two coalitions focused on sharing information, resources, and capacity building:
Lewisville Hunger Coalition
Lewisville Mental Health Coalition
Serve Lewisville also will be responsible for attracting nonprofit and social service tenants to fill the center. It will provide a reduced lease rate not to exceed 80 percent of the market rate for nonprofits and social service agencies.
What will the Serve Lewisville Center be like?
The projected site will be located at 1001 Edmonds Lane–An old bank building perfect for harnessing the power of Serve Lewisville’s potential.
The location is well suited to help people in need and is easy to find. It has good access to near neighborhoods, churches, and schools, making reaching the people who need help that much easier.
Fun facts about the facility:
Includes 1.73-acre parcel
Offers 7,983 SF of conditioned space
Includes 4,000 SF covered drive-thru
Provides a lobby, offices, meeting rooms, and storage areas
All utilities are available
And because Serve Denton values a growth mindset, and is always beginning with the end in mind, the facility also offers a possible expansion area for a community garden.
Serve Lewisville will be rolled out in two phases.
Phase 1
Because the layout is in such good condition, and already well suited for housing nonprofit members, very few walls will have to be removed. But because the facility is an old bank, there will be a major demolition to clear the teller windows and create offices.
Already existing are 8000 square feet of offices in good shape, so the only changes needed will be designed remodels that are trauma-informed–A clean and comfortable design using lighter color palettes that don’t trigger certain emotions.
In total, it will be about an $800,000 renovation.
Phase 2
In the second phase, the existing drive-thru will be torn down making space for a two-story building to be built for Serve Lewisville’s purposes.
You can also keep your eyes peeled for a beautiful Purple Martin house on the property symbolizing the City of Lewisville’s history and schools’ color.
Why Lewisville (and why now)?
The town and community of Lewisville collectively have a lot of strengths making it ripe for a nonprofit center.
The driving strengths which will be the foundation of the Serve Lewisville Center are:
Diversity of culture
Lewisville is very diverse, and that diversity provides a wealth of people who have knowledge regarding differences in culture and the best ways to serve each culture. This will be a huge benefit for the Serve Lewisville Center.
Commitment from city leadership
The city of Lewisville leaders deeply care about connecting resources and joining forces to make finding help easier for people in need. Without their support and determination, Serve Lewisville wouldn’t be possible.
Collaboration of different agencies
Many of the nonprofits in Lewisville have been around for years, and have had the benefit of knowing one another and working well together to serve the community. The Serve Lewisville Center will be an opportunity to strengthen and streamline these needed relationships.
Powerful faith communities
Churches and religious communities are a huge source of support and resources for any community, and because of that, communities thrive. Lewisville has numerous faith communities like Westside, Valley Creek, Relevant Light, Northview, and First Baptist (just to name a few) dedicated to fully serving the community in need which will only strengthen Serve Lewisville’s impact.
Great educational system
The Lewisville school district is continuing to grow and become even more vital. This much-needed presence and support will play a huge role in Serve Lewisville’s success, along with the backing of NCTC’s educational program.
Why Now?
Launching Serve Lewisville is Serve Denton’s first step in exploring what the possibilities are as an organization. It’s the next step into a bigger mission.
There are many other organizations who have done what Serve Denton is doing, including major foundations. Right now, Serve Denton has a unique opportunity to bring other sources of capital to the Lewisville community as well as the expertise to accomplish this next phase in their mission.
Bottom line? Serve Lewisville is a go.
Contractors are currently visiting the premises and doing their due diligence in order to begin working in November. And considering all the supply chain issues running amuck, that is truly remarkable.
Keep your eyes on the horizon, because when next spring hits, Serve Lewisville will be another one of its glorious blooms.