Mission:
To provide for the basic human needs of all people in our community in a welcoming, respectful and caring way.
Vision:
To be the leader in stewardship and service in Texas.
Values and Commitment Statement:
As a community nonprofit that provides basic needs, The Caring Place recognizes that racism and socioeconomic disparity exists in our nation and in our community, and we will work to eradicate both. We are committed to: welcoming and serving all neighbors in a caring way; listening to and engaging with our neighbors to make improvements; and, better reflecting the diversity of our community in our leadership and workforce. We value every individual and believe that treating all people with dignity, respect, warmth and kindness affirms both our humanity and theirs. In the wisdom of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” The Caring Place continues to strive to live up to its name, and fulfill its mission to provide for the basic human needs of all people in our community in a welcoming, respectful and caring way.
Historic Markers
In 1985, Georgetown's economy had collapsed and neighbors were going from church to church seeking help with rent, food, and clothing. Today, people across Georgetown and northern Williamson County can turn to one place for assistance with basic human needs — The Caring Place. This is the story of how we got from $17 and a few bags of clothes, to a community cornerstone.
| 1985–86 |
Where it beganGeorgetown's economy had gone bust and families were struggling to afford rent, food, and clothing. Two community members envisioned a single place where neighbors could turn for help and brought the idea to the Georgetown Ministerial Alliance. Out of their work, The Caring Place was born. Former Mayor Carl Doering donated the first building, an old slaughterhouse on 8th Street with no heat or air conditioning. The Caring Place opened on June 8, 1985 with a handful of volunteers and a few bags of donated clothes. |
| 1990 |
Room to growTCP opened a larger facility at 2001 Railroad Avenue, allowing the thrift store to become a significant source of income to fund the mission. |
| 2004–05 |
A permanent homeDue to growing needs the current building at 2000 Railroad Avenue was built. Just one year later, the 2000 Railroad building expanded to keep pace with community need, and 2001 Railroad was sold to help fund a project. |
| 2011 |
Serving more neighborsA major expansion resulted in a larger food pantry, a food warehouse, an expanded Programs & Services department, and departmental growth within The Shops at The Caring Place and the donation receiving area. |
| 2012–13 |
Investing in the futureThe Board of Directors purchased and renovated the property across the street at 2001 Railroad Avenue, the same building that had served as The Caring Place from 1990 to 2004. The renovated 2001 Railroad building began hosting educational programs and complimentary services offered by other nonprofit organizations. |
| 2014 |
Financial hope restoredThe Caring Place's Alternative Loan Program, a partnership with First Texas Bank, was created, giving people in financial crisis a real path forward. The program replaces a predatory high-interest loan with a new loan at an affordable interest rate. |
| 2017 |
A second storeHaving outgrown 2000 Railroad once again, The Caring Place opened its second thrift store — Second Helping — at 3700 Williams Drive. Programs & Services soon moved across the street to 2001 Railroad, freeing space for pantry and retail operations. |
| 2018 |
Increased offerings for seniorsDue to growing needs in the community, The Caring Place launched the Senior Independence Program. |
| 2019 |
Renewing our promiseThe Caring Place updated its mission statement and adopted its "CARING" values, reaffirming a commitment to serving every neighbor with dignity and respect. |
| 2020 |
Helping in a pandemicTCP closed for three months, to focus solely on food distribution. Community support was overwhelming and helped TCP continue to serve clients. |
| 2022 |
Exponential community supportEvery year since 2022, TCP has served record-breaking numbers of people requesting assistance. |
| 2024–25 |
Caring by the LoadThe Caring Place added the "Loads of Caring" laundry program as a new service to neighbors. Enclosing our donations warehouse significantly increased our capacity to receive and process donations, leading to increased revenue to support a growing demand for services. |
Our Full History:
The economy had gone bust. Many people in Georgetown were laid off and were having trouble paying their rent and utility bills. Many were hungry and unable to afford groceries for their families or buy clothing for the children. So it’s today? No, it’s 1985 in Georgetown, Texas. Back then, families went from church to church and to the County seeking financial assistance, clothing and food. Today, people from all over Georgetown and northern Williamson County can go to one place – The Caring Place – for assistance with basic human needs.
Although many leaders and volunteers helped make The Caring Place a reality, two women from the community started it all. Yolanda (Yoli) Branson, a volunteer at St. Vincent De Paul Society, and Marty Maxwell, an outreach worker at the Madella Hillard Neighborhood Center with Williamson Burnet Counties Opportunities, had a vision. They approached the Georgetown Ministerial Alliance (comprised of the pastors of eleven Georgetown churches at the time) and asked them to create a single place where people who needed emergency assistance could go for help.
Yoli Branson
Doris Krohmer, an original Board member, provides a perspective on the origins of The Caring Place. “My pastor at First Presbyterian invited me to that first organizational meeting. You had all these ministers at the end of their ropes. They were broke. The economy in Georgetown had just gone bust. Many people had lost their jobs, especially people in construction, and they were really suffering. There was no coordinated effort to help. Welfare was weeks behind. The ministers were desperate because there were no resources available. They realized that if they pulled together they would be able to do far more than they could individually.”
Rev. Tim Antwerp from Christ Lutheran and Rev. David Duncan of First Presbyterian took the lead in helping to organize the churches to create such a community center. They also formed the first Board of Directors, made up of a lay volunteer from each of the member churches and additional community leaders like Charles Steger (the first Board President), Norm Peters (the first Board Vice-President), Howard Burt, William Hoeflein (the first Treasurer), Sue Meadows and Doris Krohmer.
Former Georgetown Mayor Carl Doering donated the first building, an old slaughter house on 8th Street. It had no heat and no air conditioning, and presented a real challenge to clean up. Even so, the original founding team was very excited to get into the building. The first day of business was June 8, 1985. The inventory was a few bags of donated clothes and the cash box contained $17 in donations. With a great deal of faith, the first few volunteers set about recruiting volunteers from the various churches and civic organizations.
The organization grew and prospered, though not without enduring and surviving some tough economic times. In 1990, The Caring Place opened a new, larger facility at 2001 Railroad Avenue, which allowed the thrift store to become a significant source of income. Soon outgrowing that facility, the current building at 2000 Railroad was built in 2004, and enlarged the very next year. Six years later, that building was bursting at the seams. The 2011 expansion provided a larger food pantry, food warehouse, an expanded Programs & Services department and space for additional specialty departments within The Shops at The Caring Place.
The next year, the Board of Director purchased the property across the street at 2001 Railroad Avenue that served as The Caring Place from 1990-2004. That building was renovated and in late 2013 hosted educational programs and complimentary services offered by other nonprofit organizations. Again, by 2017, we had outgrown the space available at 2000 Railroad, and opened a second Thrift Store, Second Helping on 3700 Williams Drive. The Programs & Services department moved shortly afterwards across the street to the facility at 2001 Railroad
The Caring Place continues to fulfill the mission for which it was created back in 1985. It remains a community based and community supported organization which serves the community. The Caring Place exists because of the generosity of the Georgetown community and because of the confidence the community has in the ability of The Caring Place to step up, and not step over, our neighbors in need.
The Future:
As The Caring Place continues to live out its mission, the organization has implemented some new things along the way. In 2019, The Caring Place updated its mission statement to the one you see at the top of this page now. During that process, The Caring Place also adopted, what it calls, "Caring Values." The acronym leads the way in describing the organization's values.
C aring
A ccountable
R espectful
I ntegrity
N eighborly
G rateful
