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Saving lives one backpack at a time

An organization in Novi is bringing survival packs to Detroit’s homeless

Live in the D – What started off in Jeff Hocking’s basement to help the homeless in Detroit is now a Warehouse filled with volunteers filling up survival packs for the homeless. About ten years ago, Hockings was inspired to start the organization The Congregation of Every 1 because he had experience with homelessness through friends and family. Hockings and Tom Costello started with an opportunity to provide sandwiches in Detroit, but Hockings explained to “Live In The D” host Tati Amare and guest host Jasen Magic, “we also talked to them and found out they needed so much more.”

For the last 10 years, the organization has delivered more than 200 packs monthly into the neighborhoods of Detroit. Costello said, “The homeless are very happy to tell you what they need,” which now helps them to pack up exactly what they are looking for.

The Congregation of Every 1 focuses on going straight into the neighborhoods of Detroit to deliver their survival packs personally, whether they are in abandoned homes or buildings. Costello told both Amare and Magic, “what the homeless people want the most from us is time.”

For more information on The Congregation of Every 1 and how to get involved check out the video above.


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