Tracey's Place of Hope hosts ribbon-cutting ceremony for final renovation

Tracey's Place of Hope celebrated its completed renovations through a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Oct. 14. Tracey's Place of Hope, named after Fred and Angela Biletnikoff's daughter who was murdered in Redwood City, is a shelter for at-risk youth, particularly girls who have gone through the hardships of drug addiction, domestic abuse and/or human trafficking. It is located off of Taylor Road in Loomis and is one of many shelters run by Koinonia Homes. The shelters are funded in part by the Biletnikoff Foundation. Fred Biletnikoff, a former Raiders football player, and his wife, Angela attended the Oct. 14 ceremony to celebrate Tracey's Place of Hope's accomplishments. During the Oct. 14 ceremony, Fred Biletnikoff said he was "thrilled" that the home was finally fully completed. Construction originally began in 2016 with three phases to complete. The third and final phase included completing a recreational building for the girls that has a ballet barre and an open space for other physical activities and a therapeutic gardening area. "It is great to witness what once was an aging home come to life," said Ron Loder of Loder Construction, one of the partners leading construction for the first two phases. "With events such as COVID-19 creating setbacks far from our control, the Biletnikoff Foundation and contributors fought through the adversity to put the finishes on this well-constructed home. The girls are grateful and deserving." When the pandemic hit, Angela Biletnikoff said, the volunteers were determined to work through to completion. She said during the ceremony that the home's completion is a "fantastic testimony of how to push through COVID." Tracey's Place of Hope also serves exactly what it says: it's a place of hope, according to Doug MacFarland, the Biletnikoff Foundation president. "Hope is not shared by everybody," MacFarland said during the ceremony. "Right here, this is going to give these girls hope." For letting them "dig up Loomis," the Biletnikoff Foundation honored Loomis Mayor Jenny Knisley among many other local officials, with a commemorative shovel. "What you've done is given these girls empowerment," Knisley said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. According to Angela Biletnikoff, the organization, Home Aid, which helps nonprofits build housing, donated $10,000 toward Tracey's Place of Hope. The Biletnikoff Foundation raised more than $1.5 million in donations from other sponsors, including Elite Power Inc., Hallmark Building and Design, and Sunworks. Since the home reopened after the COVID-19 pandemic, it has housed more than 100 girls, according to Fred Biletnikoff.