Compassion has a good return on investment

Several years ago, I spoke at a CCSC church, giving a "moment for mission" during worship services. After the service, a woman came over to let me know she was a client many years ago.

She had been a stay-at-home mom with a toddler, and her husband walked out on her, disappearing with all their financial assets. Her church was her rock, providing emotional support, lots of love, and bringing her to CCSC.

She wanted me to know how much CCSC had helped her. After her husband left, she found a job, although it did not pay much. Her standard of living dropped dramatically, so she and her son came to CCSC on occasion for food, financial assistance, and help through the youth services programs. It was tough, but she worked hard and received promotions with pay raises over time.

When she spoke to me that Sunday, she said her son had graduated from high school and joined the military. He was serving his country and had a plan for his life; she was clearly proud of him. They had made it.

I'm writing about her story not just to share a happy ending, but also to demonstrate what just a little help can do to propel a family forward. Our ministry's culture is saturated in compassion, but we use a business model to operate the mission. We alleviated her immediate burden and made a tangible, long-term impact on her life, keeping this family from being hungry, homeless, and living in poverty.

This is a requested re-run

A couple of you reached out to me after my posting earlier this week, requesting I re-post the blog from December 2013, so it is below.

Do we ever give up on someone?

We helped someone a few weeks ago who was homeless for 40 years until he decided to come off the streets.  Over the years, many people had tried to convince him to leave the streets, and he always said "no".  Until one day 18 months ago he said "yes" and then embarked on a new phase of his life.

He served in Vietnam and saw things he said were too horrible to describe.  When he came home, he was not welcomed back by his family or his community - he felt the brunt of society's anger for the Vietnam War.  Looking back, he understands that the lack of support, coupled with undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) caused him to detach first from his family and eventually society.  He entered the world of living on the streets and stayed there for 40 years.

When he agreed 18 months ago to get help, he was diagnosed and treated for PTSD and referred to the Veterans Administration (VA) for help in entering mainstream society.  He has received services from the VA, and at the time he came to CCSC, he had an apartment he could afford and was about to start a skills-building program that will help him to find work. 

He came to us needing food.  His benefits are enough to pay for his apartment's rent, but he often runs out of food before the end of the month.  His demeanor was serious and focused.  He has been through hell and is not light in spirit, but he is quietly grateful for the turn in his life. 

I have thought a lot about him these last few weeks.  I wonder why he finally said "yes" to coming off the streets.  I wonder how many people gave up on him: his family, friends and others who encountered him.  If I had been his friend, would I have given up on him? Or would I have persevered in trying to help?

Who knows.  But my encounter with this gentleman highlights an important spiritual truth: no one's life is disposable, and there is hope in even the darkest situations.  I am grateful to him for his living witness of life's redeeming possibilities, and I'll bet he has positively impacted everyone who has worked with him these last 18 months.

We helped a veteran today

He's disabled, works part-time, and barely makes it each month. I have a soft spot for veterans. A fair number have come through our doors over the years, and it bothers me to see their struggles.

A few years ago, we helped a female veteran who was escaping an abusive husband. She took her children to a shelter and slowly began to rebuild her life. The shelter provided temporary housing and the emotional support she and her children needed to heal. CCSC provided clothing, school supplies for the children, and help in finding work. The story has a happy ending in that she found a well-paying job and was able to move into her own place.

And then there was the homeless man who I wrote about a few years ago. He was homeless for 40 years after serving in Vietnam and is now off the streets. (His story is worth re-reading, by the way. Just scroll down to December 2013 to find that blog).

The gentleman we helped today simply needed food. It is September 26 - the end of the month - and he had run out of money. He lives on about $800/month, so it's a stretch to make those dollars last all month.

How can you help? Donate food, and you'll be helping veterans as well as working families, the elderly, children, victims of domestic violence and all those in our community who live in delicate, vulnerable situations.

I met some motivated women today

Today I dropped into the English class we offer the Martha's Way students. It's taught by one of our volunteers, John Reynolds from Westminster Methodist Church.

While it seems obvious that someone would take an English class to learn the language, I was interested in understanding the motivation behind the women taking two hours out of their day, twice a week, to come to class. And the answers distilled into two main reasons: 1) to improve their skills, therefore increasing their income, and 2) to help their children.

When asked about their dreams, these also distilled down to two main answers: 1) economic independence, and 2) to provide a better life for their children. These are the dreams of mothers. As always, I left the classroom reminded that our students and I have more similarities than differences.

This fall, CCSC is off to a great start with a record of 62 new students embarking upon this program that launches entrepreneurs. Are you interested in hiring one? Click here: https://28xrdq2lkndr4d54ew32w23n-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/2016-Homeowner-Packet-002.pdf.

How do you wear your stress?

I have a big birthday coming up, so age is on my mind. I confess to being fairly shocked at the person gazing back at me in the mirror: the smile lines and strands of gray hair startle me.

This is what's in my head as I sit in on an interview with an older client. She's had a hard life: her husband walked out on her, leaving her as a single mother; her parents died shortly afterwards, deepening her grief; and she's been hungry often in her life. Recently she had a stroke, and the medical bills have been overwhelming.

The surprise is when she pulls out her identification along with her children's: I assumed she was in her 60s with grown children, but she's actually 12 years younger than me with children living at home. Stress has aged her.

The CCSC volunteer helping her is kind and patient, coaxing out details of her story so we can help with immediate needs as well as make quality referrals to other nonprofits. She needs food and clothes, but we also connect her with a medical clinic offering pediatric care as well as mental health services. She's looking for a higher paying job so we send her to CCSC's JobNet program.

She leaves our offices a little lighter, but her overall burden is heavy. This is not a feel-good story - it's a hard story that reminds me of how small my struggles are compared to others'. It's a story that makes me grateful to work at CCSC.

This really happened to me...

I was sitting at a traffic light, a few cars back, and a homeless woman was up ahead with a sign asking for help. As the light turned green, I slowly accelerated, and as I passed her (in slow motion, I think...), she banged on my car hood, and yelled "the church has forgotten about me!"

I kid you not. Out of all the cars she could have said that to, why me?

I'd like to tell you I circled back, got out of my car, and had a good conversation with her. But I was late for a meeting, and actually... kind of speechless. And startled. I don't remember a thing about my meeting, but everything about that encounter.

And I've been thinking about her words, wishing I had directed her to our food pantry and other church-based services in the community. I wish I had shared what I know: that the church, especially here in Houston, is active in helping others.

I know church people working to prevent human trafficking, teaching ESL classes, tutoring at-risk kids, mentoring prison inmates, providing chaplaincy care at hospitals, and addressing many societal needs.

Naturally, I can point to the 40 CCSC churches active in our ministry. Just last Saturday, we had hundreds of volunteers from these churches spend their morning assembling thousands of school supply packets for low-income children. Faith Lutheran Church generously loaned us their facility for this event.

While this was occurring, a team of volunteers from River Oaks Baptist and Saint Paul's Presbyterian Churches ran our food pantry in Southwest Houston. It is located on the grounds of St. Luke's Methodist @ Gethsemane. And volunteers from a variety of churches, along with a team from St. Martin's Episcopal Church, were operating our food pantry in central Houston.

I could go on and on.

Essentially though, I hope the homeless woman got the help she needs. Rest assured, I am no longer passive while my car is idling. I'm paying attention to everything going on around me.

What we did in June

I enjoy combing through the program statistics, so below is a snapshot of what CCSC's staff and volunteers accomplished last month.

We:

• fed 820 hungry people
• prevented 75 families from becoming homeless or living in substandard conditions
• helped 44 people with medical needs (prescription meds, dental needs, eyeglasses)
• gave 258 people gently used clothing
• welcomed 30 new clients to the JobNet program and celebrated as 7 left because they found jobs
• graduated 38 students from the Martha's Way program, equipping them to begin their new housecleaning businesses
• generated $29,000 in sales at the Sunshine Resale Shop (these proceeds go right into CCSC's mission)

And we are on the brink of helping 6,500 at-risk students with brand new school supplies and clothing. Are you interested in volunteering at this event? See below for details or click here to sponsor a child: https://www.ccschouston.org/what-your-gifts-can-do/. It's a fun event, as you can see from this picture of Jeff Holstien, one of our dedicated volunteers who has helped to lead the program in the past.

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Back to School Event

Sort & Set-Up (Prepare grade-appropriate school supply packets)
Saturday; July 30, 2016  7:30 AM to 12:30 PM
Location: Faith Lutheran Church, 4600 Bellaire Blvd @ Ave. B (just inside Loop 610)

Distribution: (Assist clients with their school supplies, vouchers, and clothing)
Friday, August 5th, 2016
7:30 AM to 1:00 PM
-and-
Saturday, August 6th, 2016
7:30 AM to 1:00 PM
Location: Faith Lutheran Church, 4600 Bellaire Blvd @ Ave. B (just inside Loop 610).
Parking Advisory: Please park in the Crosspoint Church parking lot in the back of the church – off Avenue B. Clients will park in the Faith Lutheran Parking lot for ease of access to their cars once they pick-up their supplies.