Peacemakers serves all people. Peacemakers mentors individuals and families moving from crisis to sustainability. We partner with government, business, education, community-based and faith-based organizations to bring together needed resources for thousands of individuals and families every year.
Peacemakers Was Founded
Peacemakers was created in response to a need. It was 1998, and Pastors Rich and Robyn Wilkerson of Trinity church were struggling to meet the overwhelming needs of the community. They had exhausted their life savings and they didn’t know how they would continue helping Miami. Robyn stumbled on an advertisement in the local newspaper for a government grant. She decided to apply for the grant without any prior experience and, to her surprise, the church received $175,000 to create and run summer day camps for inner city children. This started a trend. We applied for and won more grants and additional funding and more services were offered, but there were never enough resources to go around.
We Are Peacemakers
In 2000, Peacemakers became a formal social services providing entity in Miami. Peacemakers formed partnerships with the county, state, and federal governments to help people who need a loving hand. We respond to the tremendous, pressing social needs of individuals and families residing in Miami-Dade County, Florida, an area of high poverty, unemployment, and crime.
Creating a Network & Feeding the Hungry
In August 2006, Peacemakers established the North Miami Neighborhood Resource Network, consisting of 56 community partners, which ensures that community resources are shared and encourages cross-service partnerships and collaborations between service agencies. This allows those in need easy access to multiple forms of assistance in one place.
In January 2006, we began a partnership with Farm Share, Inc. to form the North Dade Food Distribution Center on Trinity Church’s South Campus. This site administers the USDA TEFAP program and distributes fresh produce and other food and toiletry items to individuals, families, as well as faith-based and community-based, non-profit organizations that provide food to those in need. This distribution site was a strategic food recovery and relief site during the 2006 hurricane season.
Peacemakers is Growing
Today, Peacemakers facilitates social service delivery to more than 1,500 people a week through its North Miami, Miami Gardens, and satellite program locations. We have helped over 50,000 individuals since we started. There are currently eight Peacemakers affiliates in six states, with four more sites in process. Soon there will be twelve PFC centers across the country. We are helping more people every day!