LEXINGTON, N.C. (WGHP) — Nearly 2,000 people in Davidson County do not have a place to sleep at night. Right now, there is only one shelter they can go to.

A Lexington pastor saw how great the need is in her community and is working to open an outreach center she’s named House of Freedom.

It’s located at 110 W. Ninth Street in Lexington.

“The center will focus on social justice, domestic violence, sexual assault violence, teen bullying, at-risk youth, homelessness, addiction, poverty, neighbor revitalization and work force. We’re going to do all these things from this location,” Pastor Dana Hamilton said. 

On Jan. 4, Hamilton got the keys to the building. An anonymous donor invested in her dream and paid for her to own it. 

For more than a month Hamilton, who is a former officer with the Winston-Salem Police Department, has worked to remodel, reform and rebuild parts of the building to better serve her community.

She gave us a tour of the building and explained why some of the walls are pink.

“Pink is unconditional love…when you take white and black and mix it together, you get gray. I believe God has called us to be united,” she said.

She talked about how some of the space will be transformed.

“We’re going to use a room for the homeless and those struggling with addictions and various elements of life. We’ll be opening this up during the week to let them in,” she said.

There will also be a room for community gatherings, a place for self-defense training and officers set up as resource hubs.

“The transitional housing facility will be the third phase. It has multiple rooms, multiple showers and a large kitchen all the space needed for transitional housing,” Hamilton said.

Community outreach and ministry are Hamilton’s calling. She hopes when all the work is done, the center will bring light to people who may be in a dark place in their life.

“We’re going to focus on Lexington…because the need is here. We’re going to branch out. It will work like a rooted tree and will branch out,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton also plans to have the first phase of the outreach center complete by late spring,

If you are interested in volunteering or donating to help with the renovations, you can connect with her on Facebook through her non-profit Unleashed Global Ministries.

Once the center is done, Hamilton will expand her work into the neighborhood with the hope to fix up homes to make the area more welcoming.