COVER STORY

BY ANNA D’AMICO

A Nashville church made its mark in the fight against homelessness by building the nation’s first-ever micro-home village dedicated to medical respite for the city’s most vulnerable.

On July 19, ribbons were cut on 12 micro-homes at the Village at Glencliff United Methodist Church, which will be occupied by people experiencing homelessness recovering from hospital stays.

“The goal is dignity and humanity in healing,” said the Rev. Ingrid McIntyre, founder of the Village at Glencliff.

Occupants of the micro-homes will be able to stay in the houses throughout their healing process and until they can find permanent housing.

The idea of building micro-homes for medical respite was born after Nashville’s massive flood in 2010, McIntyre said. The idea was put on the back burner until 2014, when planning began.

The project faced a list of obstacles in seven years: from struggling to find the right local partner church to holdups from the COVID-19 pandemic to being taken all the way to the Tennessee Supreme Court by church neighbors in 2019.

“None of these things stopped us, they all just made it drag out, made it slower,” said McIntyre.

The ribbon cutting was attended by neighbors, members of Glencliff United Methodist Church and Nashville civil servants. The crowd buzzed with excitement as they toured the micro-homes, which consist of a combined bedroom and living area, a bathroom and lofted storage space. A live band added to the energized atmosphere.

In addition to McIntyre, speakers at the ribbon cutting included Robb Nash, the Executive/Medical Director of the Village (see Pg. 11 for a Q&A with Nash); Bobby Watts, CEO of National Health Care for the Homeless Council; Congressional candidate Odessa Kelly; Vice Mayor Jim Shulman; Board member Valegia Tidwell; and the Rev. Keith Caldwell, Board member and Pastor of Seay Hubbard UMC.

Each speaker had an opportunity to celebrate the work done by the Glencliff United Methodist Church and the Village team and make remarks about how this community is a step in the right direction in the fight against homelessness.

“This is just a little piece, a reminder, of who we are as a city and the ability of what we can do when we come together,” said Kelly. “Congratulations to the church, to the Village, for building a piece of Nashville that represents who we are and fills a hole that we have in our souls.”

Mary Ann Grigg is a longtime reader of The Contributor who became a sponsor for one of the houses after reading about the Village at Glencliff in an article in 2016.

“I cut the article out of The Contributor and saved it and when I got a chance I called Ingrid and found out it was just much more than just housing, so I was on board right away,” said Grigg.

Grigg said the Village combined her care for those experiencing homelessness and her interest in the popularity of micro-homes into a cause that will always be a part of her.

“Oh, it will always be in my heart,” said Grigg. “Once you’re in, you can’t back out.”

The work at the Village at Glencliff is far from over. There are plans for finishing a kitchen and community space for residents in addition to the 10 micro-homes still waiting to be built. There’s also still work to be done in engaging local hospitals and building partnerships with those involved with housing throughout the city, said McIntyre.