email: ©Homes of Hope for VIDA, Inc. ©2013

Homes of Hope started as a result of our involvement with a mother and her children that were in an abusive marriage. When she met this guy he presented himself as a great Christian. The abuse started while they were dating, which left the young lady crying many times after talking with him on the phone and after a date. The abuse escalated on their honeymoon. He told her what she could do and what she could not do.

Many times she would have to leave the place they lived because the violence was so bad. Fortunately her parents were supportive of her and helped her as much as they could. She would call her parents and they would help her. Many women in this position do not have supportive parents.

One such incident was while she was advanced in her first pregnancy. She was forced out into the cold and was able to walk to a friend’s house. From there she called her parents who lived out of state. Because she was due to give birth, her parents made arrangements for the mother to come and stay with her until the child was born and a few extra days. During this stay the mother saw the demon anger and a horrible fight with the expectant mother.

During the ensuing years a pattern of abuse took place. She would leave and most of the times was able to stay with her parents. The abuser would become contrite and promise that this would not happen again; he would beg and conjol her to come back. She eventually would take the children and go back and the process would start over after a brief good time.

This happened seven or eight times during twenty years before she finally got enough courage to make the break and get divorced. This had its own problems: that of verbally and emotionally abusing the children during visitation and trying to control the mother through the children. But, this is not about him; it is about how difficult it is for a mother with children to escape an abusive relationship.

The parents learned that many times their daughter would go back because after she had been with them, with several children, for many weeks she believed that she was a burden as her parents did not have much. She and her parents could not put together the resources for her to have a house to live in. You see he had used her name on credit cards and did not pay them to the point that she had very bad credit. If only Homes of Hope had been here.

If there had of been Homes of Hope, she could have received assistance in having a place to live. They would have helped her with getting job skills. She would have received mentoring and counseling to help her with life skills and coping skills.

Several years ago God began to speak to Carol about starting a transitional home ministry. After arguing with God that they didn’t have the resources, knowledge or any idea how to go about doing something on such a large scale, Carol finally said "yes" to God and shared this with Clyde. They continued praying. When they agreed that God was calling them to the ministry of helping hurting families to be free from a life of abuse, they began to share with others. God called out a group of others that shared the concern and committed themselves to working with this. Homes of Hope for VIDA (victims in domestic abuse) was formed.

Clyde and Carol Brandt, co-founders