“We Want to Give Them the Light of Jesus”: Capernaum Place Opens in Melbourne

MELBOURNE — Community leaders and supporters gathered Thursday to celebrate the official opening of Capernaum Place, a new residential community designed to help young adults aging out of foster care transition into independent living.

The $15 million project, developed by Wings of Grace Ministries, will provide housing, life-skills coaching and biblically based mentoring for foster youth ages 18 to 24. The community will include 51 housing units, with 24 of those units still under construction.

“A lot of young people have been living in a very dark place ... we want to give them the light of Jesus. That's what this place is all about,” Wings of Grace founder Dwight Bell said before the ribbon cutting.

“What we're attempting to do, and what we're going to do, is solve the homelessness problem in our community,” Bell said.

According to national foster care statistics, approximately 26% of foster youth experience homelessness by age 21 after aging out of the foster care system. By age 24, only half are employed, and fewer than 3% earn a college degree.

Representatives from local government, churches and nonprofit organizations attended the ceremony, including Palm Bay Mayor Rob Medina, Melbourne City Councilwoman Mimi Hanley, Greater Palm Bay Chamber of Commerce President Cory Skeates, Drew Warren of Community of Hope and representatives of Ways for Life.

“We have many of us here who believe in the one true God, Jesus Christ,” Medina said, pausing for prayer during his remarks. “I plead the blood of Jesus over Capernaum.”

Following the ribbon cutting, attendees gathered for a reception featuring additional remarks, food and a champagne toast. Ryan Albright, a supporter of Wings of Grace's Brunswick, Georgia, location and pastor of The Foundation, traveled to Melbourne for the celebration and offered a closing prayer.

Capernaum Place is an expansion of Wings of Grace, a Christian ministry founded by locals Dwight and Angelia Bell in 2010. Originally focused on mentoring teenagers through aviation and community service programs, the organization has since expanded to multiple locations and now provides housing and support services for vulnerable young adults.

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