An exclusive interview with the Hill Family

Five years ago, Trey Hill felt a call from God to move to Dallas’ inner city and start Mercy Street, a ministry for children. At the time, he and his wife, Melissa, and their three children were living in affluent North Dallas, where he grew up. Today, Trey and his team at Mercy Street build ongoing, mentoring relationships between adults and children starting in the fourth grade and continuing through the twelfth grade. Firmly planted in a new home in West Dallas, he and Melissa radiate fun and an authentic peace. They answer questions about their journey, about his growing ministry, and about life in “the hood.”

Q: What is the philosophy of Mercy Street?

Trey: Our goal is to raise leaders from within the community to make a difference in their community. Inner-city culture often promotes self-destructive behaviors – drugs, out-of-wedlock pregnancy, lack of respect for authority, anti-intellectualism. We say to the children, “Are you going to be a leader for good or bad? You’re a stakeholder here; how are you going to make it better?” The ninth graders who entered this program in fourth grade are just now seeing themselves as the future leaders of the community and starting to take leadership roles.

Q: Believing this was to be your life mission, why did you think it was necessary to move physically into the inner city?

Trey: There were three primary reasons. One, John 1:14 says: “The word became flesh and dwelt among us.” I think that verse is more than our means of salvation, but also establishes a model of ministry. Two, it was important to be able to share the sufferings and joys of the community with those we were working with. Three, it was important to show commitment and permanence.

Q: Melissa, what was your initial response to Trey’s desire to serve in this manner and all that it entailed?

Melissa: My heels were in the ground, and I was very conflicted. I kept asking him, “Do we have to actually live there?” We had three children under the age of four, and I was scared. I decided for the first time in our marriage, Trey needed to lead our marriage, our family, and he needed me to follow. I trusted that, under his umbrella, I’d be safer there than if I were in charge.

Q: Are you happy?

 
Trey: There is a deep-seated joy that we feel, and we are blessed more than anyone we have served. During my years in business, I always had an abiding discontent. I did not feel like I was doing what I was designed to do. As soon as we surrendered to the call to ministry, that went away.

Melissa: If we had always been in full-time ministry, I might have wanted more. But looking back on where we were before Mercy Street, I can say there's a lot to be said for having a contented husband. I certainly struggle with the trials of life, but I have fallen in love with the neighborhood and the people. Trey and I have been a lot closer. God’s given me a peace I didn’t know I could have.

Q: How are your children?

Melissa: They live successfully in two worlds. They go to a private Christian school, and they live in the inner city. Neighborhood children come in all day and play. The result is that our four children are color blind. At Christmas, my oldest daughter, Olivia, wanted a particular doll, and the only one we could find was black. Christmas morning, she was ecstatic. She never thought twice about the color.

Trey: We recently had two high-school aged boys, Dea and Darius, move in with us. They are good kids from a difficult situation. We love them, and our kids refer to them as their brothers.

Q: What about your friends?

Melissa: Our friends have been amazing. Some said at first, “I don’t know if I'll be able to come over.” That has changed. They come; they bring their children, who play kickball in our cul de sac and say, “I want Javier on my team because Javier is the best kicker.” We’re learning that we’re all the same a quarter-inch deep. We’re all fallen and need a Redeemer. We just have different issues.

Q: What is the greatest benefit to your moving to West Dallas and founding Mercy Street?

Melissa: There’s a lot to stepping out of your comfort zone and taking a risk, especially when you feel called. We would have had regrets if we had not done this. The fullness you receive living a life poured out can far surpass trying to fill your life with ‘stuff’ and status. I don’t think we have given up anything.

Trey: What we are trying to do is help children by bridging two worlds. Racial reconciliation is often event-based, surface. But when an adult loves a child, that’s trans-racial, and it feeds both ways. That’s happening at Mercy Street.