Give Today and Make A Difference in 150+ Lives!

When our friend Tony walks down the street, he feels folks judging his body odor and looking over their shoulder to see if he’s dangerous.

They don't see a veteran with the rank of sergeant before being discharged for PTSD.
They don't see a 75 year-old church-goer who proudly loves Jesus.
They don't see a man who believes it’s a calling for him to live among the homeless.

“Here, I look at the faces of people who aren’t judging me because I’m poor, because I’m Black, because I’m stinky, or because I’m hungry. They’re judging me by what they see and with their heart... and their heart has love for me.” —Tony

Tony has found himself in many different stages of life, but considers it a calling to live with his people on the streets. You can always count on him to have an encouraging word for his community at the Compound.

He is just one of the image-bearers we feed, clothe, and hug every week. Tony’s light shines just as bright as someone making big changes in our Transitional Home or entering a recovery program.

It takes at least $50,000 a year to keep the day shelter open for Tony and 150+ homeless and hurting folks downtown.

The Compound serves as a beacon of God's love downtown — providing for both essential needs like showers, clean clothing, and nutritious snacks — while also creating opportunities to build relationships and share the Gospel with the homeless.

Over the years, we learned that getting our friends out of their usual context to do something as simple as eating lunch at a restaurant can spark an amazing transformation in their outlook on life. The protective walls around their heart starts to crumble... making room for the greatest Hope and Love any of us could ever experience.

After praying over ways to offer these "Spark Experiences" for our clients, we set out to celebrate every milestone on the way to raising $50,000 alongside them.

These meaningful outings provided by our community partners will create moments of connection for image-bearers who rarely get to experience the joy and wonder of God’s creation:

$10,000 • Our homeless friends get to cheer on the Bulldogs thanks to a ticket donation from Samford basketball 🏀

$20,000 • We invite our clients to a special white-tablecloth catered dinner thanks to Mosaic Birmingham's beautiful venue

$30,000 • We take our friends to "root, root, root for the UAB home team" thanks to the support of UAB Baseball ⚾️

$40,000 • We take our our homeless neighbors to the matinee so they can experience IMAX movie magic 🎬

$50,000 • We host a launch party for Street Thought, a regular open-mic night for the unhoused to share their talents, creativity, and perspectives with all of us. By fully funding the Compound's operating budget for 2025, we can offer Street Thought as a regular special event for our clients.

$50,000 is a small portion of our total operating budget, which includes the Compound, our Men’s Transitional Home, providing safe lodging and essentials for folks in crisis & so much more... anything you can give helps!

Urban Purpose is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Your gift is tax deductible as allowed by law and will be used in the area of greatest need.