HopeNet was founded by Father James D. Conley, Peter J. DeGraaf, David A. Fortune, Dr. Paul Davis and Patrick D. Rackers in October 1991 in Wichita, Kan., following what was referred to as the Summer of Mercy. Our primary goal was to help meet the needs of families experiencing a crisis pregnancy.

By 1998, the founders and board of HopeNet recognized that a crisis pregnancy was merely a symptom of brokenness at some level. We understood that woundedness often begins in childhood, that there was a hurting child in many of the people we served. More, we began to see and agree by virtue of documented outcomes that our core organizational competency was treating brokenness. We restructured our board and term limits and turned the page to a new day and many more hurting people.

Today, as a result of the expansion and refinement of our early vision, we are passionately committed to those in crisis who have fallen and have no one to help them up. We recognize deep, personal pain crosses all walks of life—socio-economic, cultural, racial and lifestyle lines. Uniquely, our services are available to anyone. There are no eligibility requirements! No one is turned away for inability to pay. We are in the trenches with the men, women and families we serve, walking personally with them on a journey toward healing, restoration and wholeness.

Interestingly, the expanse of our vision and work is difficult for many to grasp. We agree it would be easier to serve as an organizational gatekeeper for a particular issue or demographic. But we also intrinsically understand the impact one broken life can have on a family and our community. We believe in the incredible potential of one restored life and we’re willing to go deep to help unearth it. There are many on our side:

• Our services are recognized by juvenile and family court systems.

• We have developed more than 300 partnerships with community agencies, ministries and individuals.

While HopeNet is not affiliated with any local, regional or national organizations, we maintain our early priority of collaborating with local agencies, ministries and individuals in our community. This ensures that we are not duplicating services. More importantly, our partnerships allow us to develop a solid support system for those with whom we work. This includes people who are destitute and those who have everything but a safe place to take off their masks and be authentic.

HopeNet is immediately accessible to anyone in need. Our response to personal crisis is comprehensive, professional and practical. Today, we offer four Family Services programs.