In the spring of 1993, a family practice doctor in Whitewater, Wisconsin town found out that one of his patients, a single parent with two young children, had spent the winter living in a camper.  While she was working, she did not have the money for a security deposit and first month’s rent for an apartment.  He set out to see what could be done about this, starting in his church.  Almost two years later, Bethel House, a faith-based ecumenical non-profit, housed its first family.  By the end of 2008, Bethel House had six housing units, had provided transitional housing and support services to over sixty families and has provided financial assistance to dozens more, preventing further homelessness in the area.

Six local churches originally agreed to support Bethel House, and nine churches now  participate in the mission.  United Way funding accounts for 11% of the $73,000 budget, with the rest coming from church and church member donations and two annual fund-raisers.  Bethel House started with a house and a duplex leased from the large Methodist church in the community, which had bought the properties thinking that they would be torn out for church expansion. In the intervening years, Bethel House has added three more houses.