Dorcas Young Griffin, the newly appointed president and CEO of the Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association (MIFA), says the nonprofit's work goes beyond meeting immediate needs, as the organization focuses on helping seniors and families attain greater stability.
Griffin discussed MIFA’s food and housing programs, senior services, funding, and her vision for the organization this week on WKNO/Channel 10’s “Behind the Headlines” with host Eric Barnes and Daily Memphian reporter Bill Dries.
MIFA was established in 1968 following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Griffin noted that while its programs have evolved, its core vision of “uniting the community through service” has remained unchanged.
Every day, MIFA prepares over 2,000 meals for seniors in Shelby, Fayette, Tipton, and Lauderdale counties. According to Griffin, these services go beyond just delivering food. Drivers and volunteers also establish relationships with seniors and can notify staff if someone requires additional assistance.
“It's more than a meal. It is about really ensuring that our seniors eat, but [also] that their souls are whole, that their spirits are whole, that they have what they need,” Griffin said.
Additionally, MIFA assists individuals facing housing instability and homelessness through its homeless hotline, temporary housing support, and rapid rehousing program. According to Griffin, rapid rehousing can offer families up to 24 months of assistance while also addressing other essential needs, such as food, transportation, employment, and children's education.
“I think housing stock matters. I will also tell you that if we are not building up the people who are going into housing, then you just continue in a cycle of just crisis,” Griffin said. “And so people rarely just need a home.”
The organization is also navigating funding uncertainty while seeing an increase in clients. MIFA receives support through a mix of government funding, private foundations, and donations. Federal funding that comes through the state and the Aging Commission of the Mid-South supports MIFA’s meal services. Still, Griffin said it represents less than half of the organization’s overall funding.
“Yes, there have been cuts, there is uncertainty, but we are very conscious of that and really working to identify other funding sources to support the things that we're doing,” Griffin said.
Griffin said many of the people MIFA serves are living on or near the margins, including working people experiencing homelessness. For her, MIFA’s role is not only to provide resources but to offer a path forward.
“I think what our job is, is to serve and also to give people hope that there can be a different future,” Griffin said. “But even in that hope, that hope is being kind, it's being watchful, but it's also delivering resources to them, like food, like helping with their rent and mortgage.”
