About Us

A place of refuge, provision & possibility.

Goshen has served Panama City quietly for years. Today we are Bay County’s designated Florida Children’s Initiative site — and the work is what it has always been: walking with families toward dignity and self-sufficiency.

Our mission & vision See our programs

Who We Are

Goshen Community Resource and Recovery Center, Inc.

Goshen is a faith-rooted 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, incorporated in the State of Florida in 2019 and based in Panama City. We exist to strengthen and empower our neighbors — those who have been abused, neglected, abandoned, or left socially and economically behind — through education, social support, and healthier living that opens a real path to self-sufficiency.

When famine spread across the ancient world, the land of Goshen became a refuge — a place where a struggling people could settle, recover, and raise the next generation in safety and dignity. That is our blueprint, and that is why we carry the name.

At a glance

501(c)(3) nonprofitEIN 83-3496458 · Incorporated in Florida, 2019

Bay County 32401 Children’s InitiativeA Florida Children’s Initiative site under §409.147, F.S.

Who we serveChildren, youth, parents, and adults in the 32401 boundary area

What it costs familiesNothing. Services are provided free.

What We Do

Our programs and services

Goshen’s work is built around the whole family — because a child’s stability is inseparable from the household they go home to.

Resource Center

A trusted hub connecting neighbors to assistance, referrals, and the path to self-sufficiency — in collaboration with partners across the community.

Open door

Recovery Center

Walking with people through hardship and instability — mentally, emotionally, and spiritually — with counseling, education, and financial literacy.

Restoration

Goshen Reading

Early literacy support designed by educators, helping children reach grade-level reading — the strongest predictor of long-term success.

Literacy

32401 Children’s Initiative

Our place-based work: aligning families, schools, and partners around shared outcomes for every child in the 32401 boundary area.

Cradle to career

Rooted to Rise™

Equipping pre-teens, teens, parents, and adults to see what needs to change — and to actually make it happen.

Empowerment

Parent Resources

Equipping parents to advocate with confidence for their children’s education, health, and future.

Family support

Our Designation

The Bay County 32401 Children’s Initiative

Goshen leads the Bay County 32401 Children’s Initiative — our community’s designated Florida Children’s Initiative (FCI) site under §409.147, F.S. It is a place-based, cradle-to-career commitment to the children of Census Tracts 16, 17, and 18, built around five focus areas.

01Early development & careStrong starts for our youngest children — and a real connection to early learning.

02Education of children & youthReading on grade level, staying on track, and moving toward a diploma.

03Health & wellnessGood food, screenings, and safe places to grow and play.

04Youth supportMentoring, expanded learning, and pathways from school to career.

05Parent & guardian supportEquipping parents to lead the way for their own children.

Our Approach

How Goshen works

We start where people are

No wrong door, and no wrong reason to ask. We meet neighbors in the middle of real life.

Access

We work through partners

Churches, schools, agencies, and businesses — aligned around the same outcomes.

Collaboration

We equip, not just serve

The goal is capability that lasts after the program ends.

Capacity

We measure what matters

Real outcomes, honestly reported — to our board, our funders, and our neighbors.

Accountability

Stewardship you can see

Goshen runs lean on purpose. Donated space, volunteer hours, and strong community partnerships mean the cash you give is matched many times over by in-kind support already on the ground.

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