T
(Brace yourselves)
Today, my crew went to Urban Recipe, which is a food co-op. Essentially,
it is like a food pantry except it is very member driven. The people in the
community are members of the co-op and are responsible for pitching in and
helping out in any way they can. While we were there, it pretty much ran like
our food pantry does. We unloaded the food, sorted some boxes, and then we
milled around not knowing what to do. Then things got exciting. All of a
sudden, the sorting process began. The best way I can describe this is in the concept
of organized chaos. There was a system in place to be the most efficient. The
only problem was that we did not know what that system was!!! The very first
thing the coordinator said to the rest of the community members was to be
patient with us and to be gentle with us because, and I quote, “They do not
know what they are doing.” In the end we got all of the food boxed up and was
ready to be delivered.
Then, the co-op meeting began. For the first part we
were sorting cardboard, but then we caught the last part of the meeting. This
is where I saw God work the most. There was a discussion about getting rid of
the scripture reading at all of the meetings that was brought up by another
member. The very last person to speak was a teenage girl who was probably
around 13. When she stood up, everyone in the room listened and she just shared
about how important the church was to her and how it truly allowed her to feel
happy and how to live the good life. Hearing her speak so passionately really
spoke to me because she had so much conviction about her faith and truly
trusted in the word of God and how it would get her through everything.
Perhaps
the most touching part for me was while I was helping these two women load
their car. We were just talking about life and laughing and sharing stories and
I had finished loading. They tried to give me a tip for helping them but I only
receive payments in hugs so I ended with 2 hugs.(Which is much better). But
just talking with them and seeing how grateful they were for our help and how
they were so inviting and patient was so great to see.
Urban Recipe really
showed what life should be about. Being in community. Helping each other.
Laughing with one another. And sharing a real love for God. - Zane
“Church is really my
passion, it’s my favorite thing to do and I just LOVE it!” Today, I was working
at a kid’s camp for a group called Nicholas House. They provide housing and rehabilitation
for homeless families, and they are one of the only homeless shelters in
Atlanta that keeps the entire family together rather than splitting the fathers
in one home and the women and children in another. As I was in this kid’s club,
I met a young boy named Brandon, whom the wonderful quote came directly from.
This boy was bubbly as all get out and was bouncing around from person to
person laughing and getting to know every single one of us. When I was finally
able to get a word in, I asked him what he liked to do and what he wanted to be
when he was older. He shared that he wanted to be a professional singer and
that was his absolute FAVORITE thing to do “in the whole wide world.” I asked
him to sing us a song and I was not prepared for what came next… the voice that
came out of this 11 year old boy was the most amazing thing I have ever heard.
His voice brought me to tears and I have never seen someone with so much
passion for anything. The gospel songs that he sang were so powerful and he
believed every single word he said. God spoke through that boy so powerfully
today and the spirit that he had within him was so moving. I later found out
that he has lived without his father his whole life and him and his mother live
in a homeless shelter, but all the while he had the most positive attitude I’ve
seen in such a small human. Humbling to say the least. I have been so blessed
in this life with my family and the privileges that I have been given.
Speaking
of blessings, WHAT A TIME I have had over these past 6 years with Youthworks
and Fishers UMC Fire and Water. I can’t imagine
what my life would have been like if these trips were not a part of my life. Junior
high and high school have brought struggles unlike any other but being a part
of something like this is something so special that makes it all a little bit
easier. I have been forever changed by the people I have met and the
experiences I have been challenged with. I could never replace the experiences that
I have been given, and for that I am forever thankful. As I’m writing my last
blog of my last mission trip in high school, I am sitting with such a beloved
group of a few seniors and my heart is overflowing and crying at the same time
because it’s all drawing to an end. As we sit and reminisce about our favorite
memories, I can only hope that these trips touch everyone and change them for
the better, just like it has for me. (But don’t worry, I’ll be back as a
Youthworks staff) J
- Lauren D.
For the sake of confidentiality I will not be putting real
names, they will be close but not exact. So today my crew and I went to this place
called Urban Recipe, Urban Recipe is basically a food pantry. What makes that
place special is the dignity it provides, instead of just giving people free
food, it makes them pay a small fee so they feel like they are not receiving
handouts. When the instructor told us
this, I felt happy; they made the people feel better about themselves and gave
them food. First, we packed food, we put food in boxes for the people to take,
then one of the Youthworks counselors, Bridget, and I packed lettuce in bags
for dispensing as we did that we talked to Vivian the lady in the kitchen and
to each other. After that I met a super nice woman named Grace. She packed cans
into bags and dispensed them we had a really nice conversation about her life,
mine, and our faith. I had a lot of fun talking to Grace and Vivian, but all
around us was organized chaos. People were going all different directions, with
different tasks and it was very hectic. The boxes were tightly packed together
so we had to maneuver around them, which was not the best positioning but it
was humbling to see everybody working so hard to help others.
When all the boxes
were packed (they were three boxes that were all overflowing) we took out all
of the used boxes into a truck. My crew and I made a conveyor belt and loaded a
truck full of boxes for recycling and I was at the end of the line. I talked to
a man, whom I didn’t know his name, and he told me that he was from Atlanta and
went to college in Kentucky. I mentioned our seniors and he was talking about
Purdue, he was also super kind and helpful. We went back inside and all of the
people were having a committee meeting and one of the issues was reading
scripture at their meetings. You can tell that ALL of the people in that room
were super devout and I was inspired to become more like them. You could ask
each and every person and they would praise God until they day they died and I really
felt inspired to become more like them. Even a teenage girl stood up and
proposed her idea for their issue and I was thinking that I wish I could do
that, I wish I could become more like her and for the rest of the day that was
my goal.
After the issue was resolved we helped people pack up their food and
put into their cars. I met a wonderful woman named Nancy, we talked for a good
fifteen minutes about everything. She told me never to get into the wrong crowd
and how to always love your parents(which I already do, very much). She also
told me the best thing I could’ve heard that day, “You can never fix all the
problems in the world, but you can try and solve ‘em”. I could hardly
understand her a lot of the time, but I picked up enough to have a decent
conversation. Then she had to leave and I helped pull her fold up cart and I’m
already a bad driver but when you put cracks and bumps in a narrow road it gets
worse… I made it through though and I was so sad when I left, she tried to pay
me but I denied and ended up with a hug(which was WAY better) instead. We said
goodbye, but I’ll never forget her, I had a fun day today that was filled with
laughter, kindness, and most of all faithfulness. – Lauren B.
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