In 2017, local community members were concerned with the lack of local resources available for neighbors living without housing and in poverty in Lamar County. They worked with a Dallas-based nonprofit to design programs that would most immediately help meet the basic needs of the neighbors in their communities. The community came together, and CitySquare Paris (CSP) was founded. The Opportunity Center opened in July of 2018 in the heart of West Paris after extensive renovations to the former Oak Park United Methodist Church. In 2024, CitySquare Paris formed its own 501(c)3.

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