EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES THROUGH SUPPORT & REVITALIZATION

WALKER'S HISTORY

Demetrious Walker studied business management at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, qualifying him to be able to serve students at Career Educational Group through the Admissions Department. With his endearing passion, he assisted students with their academic goals, financial balancing, and long-term planning. Walker has also served as chairperson of the recruitment committee for the college, enabling him to utilize his stellar marketing and business skills.

A CALLING TO SERVE

He has a scope of successful endeavors ranging from business, real estate, and restaurant ownership. His desire and passion to help those who are less fortunate were born when he was just a child. He would see people who were hurting, less fortunate, struggling with starvation, poverty, and mental illness, and yearned to evoke a positive change in their lives. This realization made him ask himself several questions:

"What happened in their life?" and "How did they get like this?" After pondering those questions, he was given a solution, or what Demetrious calls "a vision from God." Within this vision, a question rang loud and clear: "What if I could help them?" These questions spearheaded the determination of the next steps of his journey. It was at this moment that God began to manifest his vision unto his heart, and he became determined to formulate a blueprint and design to assist others. This desire was not recreational; he felt compelled to devote his life to this mission.

SHAPED BY PERSONAL ADVERSITY

During his life, Demetrious has experienced unemployment, incarceration, and a plethora of life's misfortunes. He, too, has struggled with bouts of homelessness, knowing firsthand what it feels like to be unsure of where his next meal was going to come from. These personal perils have monumentally driven Demetrious to have unsurpassed compassion and empathy for those he has set out to serve.

MEET DEMETRIOUS WALKER

Mr. Walker is the founder of Fathers and Blessings (FAB), a nonprofit organization started in Chicago, IL. Presently located in Chicago's South Suburbs, Fathers and Blessings NFP (FAB) is making tremendous strides in these often-overlooked communities.

CREATION OF FATHERS AND BLESSINGS

In 2012, Demetrious was asked to become the Chief of Marketing for a service project for the homeless on the city's South Side called The Mother's House. His responsibilities incorporated all of the skills acquired through his previous management and entrepreneurial experiences, and he soon became an effective liaison between residents, health care providers, doctors, caseworkers, community stakeholders, and employment services. While at Mother's House, he implemented several programs and streamlined the residents' wellness processes to make the most impact for the overall benefit of the residents. He was insightful enough to identify the needs and ascertain what the most effective and beneficial plan of action would be. This experience leads to the creation of Fathers and Blessings, NFP (FAB), and the FAB House.

FATHERS AND BLESSINGS TODAY

Fathers and Blessings, NFP (FAB) has grown tremendously since its conception and has been awarded the prestigious Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago Award for its outstanding commitment and effort to promote, strengthen, and provide stability to our communities. Walker has fully accepted the call on his life and has expanded Fathers and Blessings NFP to reach beyond housing to job training, neighborhood beautification, mentoring programs, a resale store, and a host of other innovative programs. Every morning, he asks himself the same question Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. asked during his 1957 speech: "What are you doing for others?" After asking himself that question, he sets out to answer it by the time he lies down to slumber each night. Demetrious Walker believes that his life's purpose is to help those who are less fortunate by giving them hope and showing them a different way of life.

Volunteers in blue shirts having a discussion.

MISSION

FAB is a nonprofit grassroots organization that focuses on community building and revitalization. Our mission is to provide
transitional housing, youth mentoring/character development, neighborhood beautification, employment readiness, and enrichment services designed to uplift the community and disenfranchised citizens in the community.

ABOUT US

VISION

To eliminate factors and circumstances that contribute to homelessness and provide solutions and services designed to strengthen, revitalize, and resurrect the overall quality of life for residents in underserved/disenfranchised communities.

Empowering the Community with a "Hand Up"

Fathers and Blessings (FAB) NFP is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization that focuses on providing empowering resources that are designed to uplift the communities that we serve. We have adopted a two-fold approach to best meet the needs of our community. We endeavor to provide people with a “hand up” and not just a “handout.”

Providing Safe and Sustainable Housing

First and foremost, we provide upscale transitional/permanent housing to accommodate individuals and families who are experiencing hardships, which jeopardize their ability to obtain and maintain suitable, sustainable housing. The FAB House currently serves as a safe haven and home for veterans and non-violent offenders seeking to overcome various challenges that have held them captive from rising above unsettling and oftentimes painful circumstances in their lives.

Uplifting the Community with Resources

Secondly, we focus on providing empowering resources that are designed to uplift the entire community. Presently, we provide community beautification, lawn care, vacant lot and abandoned/foreclosed property maintenance, and landscaping services to the Village of Dolton. Even though we are a recently established non-profit organization, we are operating at an accelerated rate. Organizations throughout the region have contacted us expressing interest in partnering due to being referred to us by individuals and organizations that have witnessed the impact that we have on the communities that we serve. With continued partnerships, we would be able to reach our goal of serving as a catalyst for change in these communities.

Sustaining the Mission