Our most recent filming took us to the Palm Beach County community. The focus of the five days of filming all stemmed from the work of The Lord's Place along with their several collaborative partners who help support the homeless/poverty-stricken community.

The Lord’s Place is dedicated to breaking the cycle of homelessness by providing innovative, compassionate, and effective services to men, women, and children in Palm Beach County.

Our production started with the SleepOut 2023 event at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium (Jupiter, Florida) hosted by The Lord’s Place. SleepOut 2023 encourages people to step out of the comfort of their homes for a night in a symbolic effort to raise awareness of the estimated 3,000 men, women, and children without a home on any given night in Palm Beach County. Attendees came to learn more about homelessness through client stories, activities, and a candlelit ceremony.

The Lord's Place Chief Executive Officer Diana Stanley offered her thoughts on the event and the work that the Lord’s place has done for more than 40 years.

On Saturday, Board Chair of St. George Table, Alex Kramer, spoke on the value the organization brings to the community as a special hot meal was served to the food insecure at Victory City Church, Inc. in Riviera Beach. St. George Table is a conduit for social, health, legal, educational, and other human services by connecting those living on the margins to organizations like The Lord's Place. They also serve hungry individuals and families a hot lunch and dinner Monday through Friday.

On Sunday, we spent the day with CROS Ministries, an organization that serves the hungry in Palm Beach and Martin Counties through community collaborations. Executive Director Ruth Mageria discussed the gleaning process at Boynton Beach farm location where CROS Ministries is able to recover produce that is left after the market-grade harvest is complete. The fresh produce goes to the Palm Beach County Food Bank and other partners. It is then distributed to local pantries and meal programs, like St. George Table, who provide it directly to their clients. The standards for produce in supermarkets is very high, and an estimated 52 million pounds of perfectly edible produce goes unpicked every year in the United States.

On Monday, we started with Joshua Deli & Catering, a social enterprise which supports The Lord's Place programs and services. The Joshua Deli Staff prepare and deliver food to Café Joshua which serves lunches and provides table companions for the hundreds of people who are homeless who come to The Lord’s Place weekly for a hot meal. The deli also provides an opportunity for formerly homeless clients to complete culinary work experience training in a professional culinary setting. The training program provides students with the necessary foundational skills to acquire an entry-level position in any commercial kitchen.

Next, we headed out into the field with Joey Nieves, the Supervisor of Street Outreach and Emergency Shelter for The Lord’s Place. Joey is a compassionate, empathetic gentleman who once experienced homelessness for several months. He spends his days developing relationships with those living on the streets, speaking with them about how to create a better life for themselves and their families and connecting them to the services they need to take care of their mental and physical health and eventually exit the streets. During our time in the field, we listened to many who live in the parks, beaches, and woods.

On Tuesday, we filmed with the team at The Lord's Place as they helped teach individuals the best way to look for a job, which included writing a resume.

We then conducted interviews with clients at William H. Mann Place for Men campus, located in Boynton Beach, which comprises of two supportive housing programs, Joshua House long-term supportive housing program and the Recovery Center short-term housing program. Together, the programs offer a seamless continuum of housing services for homeless men.

Thank you to all of the organizations and individuals that allowed us to film with you.