Extraordinary times call for extraordinary acts
Bayside Church of South Sacramento, otherwise known as BOSS, has become an extraordinary partner of St. John’s. I was at one of their services a couple of months ago and heard what you might call a ‘lightbulb’ sermon. The message that was delivered was about the Platinum Rule. The Platinum rule, as the Pastor described it, is to love and bless others as God has loved and blessed you… to love and bless others as you have been loved and blessed. This, to me, is THE answer.
In difficult times like these, we tend to want to roll up into a cocoon and protect ourselves. But no matter who you are, no matter what you are facing, now is NOT the time to bundle up and complain to others how big this storm is… now is the time to stare this storm in the face and show it how big you are— now is the time for us to go out of our way to love and bless others in need as we have been loved and blessed ourselves. Now is the time for us to serve in extraordinary ways, versus in the ways we ordinarily do.
Below you will see that we, as a Shelter community, are leading by example… it is not good enough for us to simply serve the 112 women and children under our roof. We are going out of our way to love and bless others as we have been loved and blessed…
Feeding the Homeless
The leadership class at St. John’s Shelter completed a special project in March. With donations from the community, and through weeks of hard work, our children fed 120+ homeless people.
The leadership class collected food donations from the community to make sack lunches. Making and assembling 120 sandwiches was time consuming and a bit messy, but the kids were committed every step of the way. The last Saturday in March we handed out lunches at the park, by the river, and in the Loaves and Fishes complex. Our children demonstrated that small hands can truly can make a big impact!
Malaysia, age 9, was a participant in the sack lunch giveaway. She shared her thoughts on the experience. “At first, handing out the lunches was kind of scary because there were so many people crowding around us, but it really wasn’t that bad. The most fun part for me was putting lunches under the bridge. I’m glad I went. I learned that there are more homeless people in the world than I thought.”
Assisting with the Closing of Tent City
Tent City was officially closed by the City of Sacramento on April 16, 2009. St. John’s staff and clients were able to assist those who could not find space in a Shelter with motel vouchers. Every afternoon for nine days, St. John’s staff and clients spent four-five hours to make sure that no one was left behind… that everyone who wanted a safe place to lie their head had one. Most were so very grateful to receive the temporary housing fix.
The experience was eye-opening for both our staff and our clients. They admitted that when they thought about “Tent City”, they thought about “crazy, drugged out or mentally challenged people.” But they learned otherwise. “My experience was one that I will never forget. I thought it would have been a very traumatic experience for the people who resided in “Tent City”, but for them, it was simply survival. They bathed in the river, hung their clothes to dry in the trees, built barbeque pits to cook on. They even had built fireplaces made of rocks and sticks. Most had animals that they loved and cared for.”
Wanda, a St. John’s case manager, summed it up this way, “No one is exempt from this situation. It can happen to anyone of us at any given moment. We just have to count our blessings that we have a roof over our head, today.”
St. John’s Graduates/Clients Raise $9000+ for KVIE
On May 30, 2009, St. John's Alums and clients volunteered their time to answer phones for the KVIE fund-raising drive. They raised over $9000 that afternoon! Great job… Great teamwork… Great fun… and Great results!
St. John’s Adopts a Homeless Father and Son
Until last year, Kevin Nock was making a substantial wage as an employee of a company who installs and repairs exercise equipment in gyms. On one of his few days off, Kevin and his son were riding their bikes. Kevin was hit by a car and his left hand was shattered to pieces. The driver of the vehicle fled and was never found. Kevin underwent major reconstructive surgery, but eventually, lost his job as he couldn’t perform… subsequently, he lost his home. He sold his cars, he sold everything he could, to stay afloat. He then resorted to staying with family and friends, but that became burdensome on everyone. He finally made his way to the only Shelter in the County that accepts male-headed families, but he timed out and was forced back out onto the streets with his son. In desperation, with no one else to whom to turn, he approached the City.
We, St. John’s, were included on an email, along with 15 other providers and County executives asking, “Is there anything anyone can do to help this man and his son?” After seeing a day of emails back and forth, and no solutions, I discussed Kevin’s situation with our management team, then our clients. Yes, we are a women and children’s shelter, and yes, we are overwhelmingly busy, but we are being called to do extraordinary things in these times… We rented Kevin and his son a hotel room down the street. We agreed that they would join us for all meals, and classes during the day. Duran, Kevin’s 10 year-old son, was enrolled in our After-School Program and has become part of the family.
Kevin is in school to retrain in the culinary arts, and we are working with him to locate job opportunities. (Kevin is incredibly hard-working and committed. If you know of any job opportunities for him, please let us know!) Through the Faith and Families Program, and an extraordinary effort by our case manager, Wanda, we have finally located housing for Kevin and his son. Everyone at the Shelter, clients and staff, have been pitching in to share the blessings and the love they have been given with Kevin and his son. It has made a difference!
When our clients arrive at St. John’s, they are utterly destitute. That we are able to get them from a point of such misery to a place of where they enjoy giving back, that is true transformation. And, I believe it is what we, at St. John’s, are being called to do… we are being called to help these women and children understand that it is through individual transformation that our community, and our Country, will be transformed.
Thank you for your continued support of women and children who are homeless, not helpless!
Michele Steeb
Executive Director
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