First Presbyterian Church of Orlando is a vibrant, Christ-centered congregation committed to bringing hope to the city and a faith that transforms people just like you.  Whether you are seeking answers to spiritual questions or desiring a purposeful life with Jesus Christ, our prayer is that you will discover a living faith here in a community of friends.

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Summit Church and Central Care Mission work together in several capacities. They provide invaluable assistance to the residents of Central Care Mission by providing the residents help in all phases of their job searches and job placement.

The residents of Central Care Mission regularly volunteer to assist the members of Summit Church’s community service and outreach program called niceSERVE and visits to the Orange County Jail.

Central Care Mission’s Director, Spence Pfleiderer has assisted Summit Church in designing and implementing their mentoring program and serves on a team that meets monthly to provide guidance for the mentors of the program. This outreach extends to helping provide for weekly services in the jail and for small groups who meet for addiction recovery.

Spence also works with Summit’s Regroup Pastor, Jack West, to provide their leaders with training, retreats, and inspiration for the ReGroup leaders. This assistance allows them to focus on the needs of group members as they transform back into society.

For more information on these programs please visit Summit's website at: www.summitconnect.org

The Polis Institute's purpose is to improve the overall health of the city of Orlando with research and training that "helps people help others" and improve "well-being" in the city.  Interest in discovering the character of Central Florida led to a research project at Reformed Theological Seminary on how human needs were being addressed. The results of the study led to recommendations and the formation of Polis Institute as a means to implement them. Polis Institute, Inc. is a 501c3 charitible organization founded in 2009. 

The belief is that "well-being" will improve only when the talents of the poor are properly engaged.  To that end, The institute works on two fronts;  directly with the most distressed populations of the city and alongside the leadership of non-profit organizations dedicated to addressing poverty.  The goal on both fronts is the same: to engage the talents of the poor in inititives that strengthen the commurnity in measurable ways.

In 2011, Central Care Mission's "Project Garden" recieved the "POLIS Institute's 2011 City Champions Award".  After surveying over 250 local non profit programs, "Project Garden" was chosen was chosen for its holistic, collaborative approach.  It was stated that "Central Care Mission is a residential program that seeks not only to empower the men that enter, but their families and communities as well".  PLOIS was interested awarding recognition for programs that properly engaged their clients talents, positively impacted a distresed neighborhood, effectively utailzed partnerships and directly combatted Orlando's struggle to provide direct access to basic life necessities  (from Gallop's well-beong index).

For more information about Polis Institute visit their website: www.polisinstitute.org

Valencia is a premier learning college that transforms lives, strengthens community, and inspires individuals to excellence. Valencia provides opportunities for academic, technical and life-long learning in a collaborative culture dedicated to inquiry, results and excellence. Valencia College was named the top U.S. community college in the nation in 2011. The Aspen Institute awarded Valencia College the first annual Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence after a year-long effort to recognize excellence in the nation’s 1,200 community colleges, based on student performance and graduation data collected by the U.S. Department of Education. While serving approximately 70,000 students, 0Valencia was excited with the involvement with Central Care Mission’s “Garden Project” which provides fruit, vegetables and herbs for the Mission’s residents and neighboring community. Dr. Javier Garces, Director of Valencia’s Horticulture program on the West Campus, joined Central Care Mission in the Garden project so that Horticulture students could provide educational support and use the Garden an extension of the classroom’s hands-on learning experience. The “Garden Project” began in the summer of 2011, with the thirty 4’ x 16’ x 1’ raised beds which provided a growing area of 4,600 square feet. Central Care harvested and enjoyed the first fruits harvest in fall 2011.

Love Orlando focuses on helping those in our immediate community who are hurting, have lost hope and are broken-hearted.

First Baptist Church, Orlando has partnered with eleven Orlando-based nonprofit organizations and distributed about $1.8 million in grant awards under the Love Orlando banner during 2011. The ministry is committed to funding long-term and foundational programs that demonstrate proven results in moving families to self-sustainability. The church will continue to identify partner ministries/organizations in Central Florida to be a part of this Love Orlando initiative to address a range of issues, from homeless prevention to food for impoverished elementary-school kids to transitional housing.

Central Care Mission has partnered with the local hospitality industry to support the Love Orlando family of partners with a variety of personal comfort items, furniture and food for the hungry.