About us

The Redwood community started to form in the mid-1980s and has grown in size, population, and subsequently need since. The community center movement was first born out of interest in planting a church in Redwood during the summer of 1987. In 1988 there was an increased influx of immigrants from Mexico, and Redwood started to form a more solidified community. Alongside the population growth, crime naturally escalated and gang violence became more prevalent. This increasing need for education, infrastructure, and low-income family assistance caught the eye of a few members of the community. JoAnn Carley and Evelyn McDaniels met at a women's study in the church and began to discuss what community action would look like in Redwood. With the support of members in the community, JoAnn spoke with city representatives and the local sheriffs' offices to raise awareness and gain support from the neighboring communities.

Over the years, the community advocacy effort finally became incorporated, officially Redwood Community Center Inc. or RCCI. Enlightened with the RCCI vision of a physical community center building on the property, Mr. Ralph Giesecke, real estate developer and resident of Marble Falls, Texas, gifted a 2-acre plot of land on the corner of Redwood Road and Spruce Street in Redwood.

During the early years of operation, RCCI received three (3) United Way grants with funds allocated to supporting programs related to helping fight food insecurity, providing education, and many other community-based initiatives in the Redwood area.

Members came and went throughout the years and unfortunately, the organization came to a standstill from the early 1990s to December 2008 due to a lack of community engagement participation, but the vision and dream stayed alive. In January 2009, the non-profit was revitalized by a new group of community leaders who were devotedly driven towards finally making the vision and dream come to full fruition. In 2013 Redwood Community Center Incorporated broke ground on a building, Centro Esperanza, with much support from members of Gary Job Corps, an agency devoted to education and technical training. Although Centro Esperanza was not located on the original 2-acre plot, a physical address helped to establish beneficial community relations, gain funding eligibility, and most importantly increase the number of people served. Ultimately, in 2018, RCCI moved the building to its two-acre plot of land donated by Mr. Ralph Giesecke, 2045 Spruce Street, on the corner of Redwood Road and Spruce Street in Redwood and has enhanced services which continue to flourish.

Centro Esperanza is looking to continue to grow and develop in whatever ways best serve the community with the top three focuses - health and wellness, seniors and youth, and advance RCCI's goal of helping Redwood help itself as well as assisting areas under the auspices of RCCI funders and partners.

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