 |
| They all enjoyed the meal very much and were very polite and grateful! |
Every month, Tim and his dad from our
church go to prepare a nice meal at the
City Mission for the homeless and I’ve wanted to go with them for a long time. The thing is that they go before I get home from work and I don’t want to drive there myself. Last Wednesday, our Bible study group went to the City Mission to help serve a meal to the homeless which was the perfect opportunity for me to go with others. I’m so glad I did and would love to go do it again!
When we got there, we saw several tiny kittens outside the door who greeted us. By the time we arrived, Tim and his dad and a couple others had everything prepared so all we had to do was serve it. By the way, Tim is a very good cook who often puts together great meals for large groups. At the City
Mission in Cleveland, the homeless sit in a service first, eat and then those who want can spend the night. Each night a different church is responsible for
providing the meal.
 |
| I got to deliver the food! |
About 50 men came the night I went, mostly black. Their faces lit up when we brought them the food and many expressed their appreciation. Some of us filled the plates while others carried them to the men at the tables. We served a bowl of mixed fruit, mixed vegetables, mashed potatoes, a veal patty, a brownie with whipped cream on top and punch. They could have more as long it there was food left. Some had three helpings! There were just enough brownies for each to get only one. Some of the comments I overheard were:
“This is an all-you-can-eat buffet for free!”
“This is very good! “
Could I have another brownie?
I felt bad when I had to tell him they were all gone. I really would have liked to been able to chat with them more, but we were in a hurry to get back to the church on time. I suggested our driver bring her GPS in with here but she didn’t. I was relieved that it was still there when we got out!; I had prayed it would be. It certainly was different from my usual evenings!
Homelessness is a problem that tugs at my heart. After reading
Breakfast at Sally’s by Richard LeMeux, a homeless man’s memoir, I realize homelessness can happen to anyone, especially in hard economic
times. I am so thankful for our home! Two more good books about homelessness I recommend are:
Can’t Get There From Here by Todd Strasser (YA),
Gideon's Gift by Karen Kingsbury and
Breaking Night From Homeless to Harvard by Liz Murray (non-fiction). All these give good insight into the real problems the homeless have and are very interesting books.
Share this:
5 comments:
Thanks for the vicarious experience of serving at the supper provided by the church.
We have at least two churches here that serve meals, ours on Monday nights, and one of the Methodist churches on Wednesday nights.
I was really surprised at the number of people who are needing services like this, even in small towns.
That must be very rewarding to be able to help out like that!
Oh what you did is awesome. You're right, homelessness can happen to anyone. These people are happy to have selfless people like you.
It's wonderful you were able to help out! Homelessness can certainly happen to anyone but thankfully there are places to get good, warm food in a safe environment like at the City Mission.
Ann: That is surprising. Glad those churches provide such a nice service.
Daisy: It did feel good. Later, one of the men in our group told us he was surprised to see someone there who he actually knew from high school!
Katya Kate: I wish I could go regularly, but work gets in the way right now.
Beaded Tail: Yes, but in the winter I guess they don't have enough food to feed all who come in, but they don't turn anyone away and at least let them have a warm place to sleep. It gets really cold her in Cleveland!
Post a Comment