On a last minute opportunity, I was able to go with a few teens from my church (along with another local church) to go on a mission trip to the San Francisco Bay Area. Last year I was on a mission trip to San Francisco with one of my college classes. This opportunity was a longer trip. And we were able to work with more organizations that are making a huge impact on an area where homelessness isn't taken very seriously.
In Oakland we got to work with the Bay Area Rescue Mission on Monday and Tuesday. They have programs for the working poor and homeless and have a children's program to feed and educate children in a Christian environment while their parents are getting help for food or while they are at work. While there for two days, we played games with the kids, watched movies, played video games, helped them with their homework and reading and were able to bond with them. This part of the trip instilled in me the importance of my current ministry to children and how important it is for children to see the love of God, especially when their lives are tough.
On Monday evening we did a prayer tour of San Francisco and we got to see some pretty sad realities of people who are homeless and those who are classified as the "working poor."
Tuesday night we did a prayer tour of Oakland. Although I grew up only 2.5 hours from the Bay Area, I had actually never really seen Oakland. It was a place where you just didn't go. And as it turns out there are a lot of really great homeless people in Oakland (and San Francisco.)
On Wednesday morning we went around San Francisco and just talked with the homeless to get a feel for the area, to know what it was like to live there and to understand a bit about the things that they go through on a regular basis. My group met a woman named Barbara, she is a Christian and reminded us all of the importance of calling upon our Savior in every situation we are faced with.
On Wednesday afternoon we went to Saint Vincent's Day Home, which is a similar program to the Bay Are Rescue Mission, but it is state-run. And although we couldn't directly tell the children about God, we could still show the kids God's love by playing with them and helping their teachers teach them. My class was the 4-5 year olds. We spent 2 hours on the playground. One little four year old girl was nervous about the playground equipment. There was something that she wanted to do, that the other children were able to do, but she was scared. I was able to talk her through it, and she was able to successfully able to complete it! And then she did it again, and again, and again! (She must have done it 20+ times.) And each time she got faster and faster and was really excited that she was able to accomplish something she didn't think she was able to do.
On Thursday morning we went to Saint Anthony's which is an organization that has been helping to feed the homeless and the working poor since 1950. I was in the dining room the entire time, giving people their food and cleaning up the tables so those who walked in could have a clean place to sit and eat their food. I was proposed to by a very nice older black gentleman with a white afro. He had first asked me if I was married, when I said no, he asked if I could be his wife. We talked for a little while. And joked around. On my lunch break, I sat down and talked with a man who was homeless, but could speak 5 different languages and was part Middle-east and part Spanish. He could speak Arabic, English, Spanish, French and Italian. When it was time to leave I almost started to cry. I held back tears. Working with the homeless and the working poor has been a real treat for me and I know that God has also called me to work with these people as well and to show them how much God loves them.
On Thursday afternoon we went to POH (Project Open Hand). Last year I also volunteered at POH. This organization is similar to Meals on Wheels, but they help those that Meals on Wheels doesn't help: the homeless, those who are bed ridden or those who cannot leave their homes, those with HIV/AIDS. They also have a grocery store/pantry for those who are well enough to buy their own food. We packaged hundreds of bags of oatmeal and granola. I still wonder who all received that food.....
Also on Thursday, the group that we partnered with CSM (Center for Student Missions), we were given $10 per group to be able to help a homeless person or two with something that they really needed. We came across a few different people, but the one who sticks most in my mind is Paul (he also went by Buck). His wife was in and out of the hospital with MERSA and couldn't see her as much as he wanted to. He needed a new pair of shoes and something to keep him warmer at night. Our group went on a hunt for the closest thrift store. Couldn't find anything there, so they gave us directions for another. We must have walked almost 2 miles total looking for things for this man. We took a long time and we worried he might not have been back when we arrive back at the area we talked in, but we found him. We were able to find an almost new pair of shoes for him, plus a fleece jacket so we could wear it under his 49ers one. They were both in his favorite color blue. And he was tickled at that the shoes not only were in his color, but that they fit well and that the brand name "Beast" was the nickname his wife had for him. <3 a="" man.="" nbsp="" p="" such="" sweet="" very=""> Friday was our group's free day. I took that to go see some family I hadn't seen in a while and it was great to do a little catch up. (Although traveling, we got stuck in bad traffic, so my visit with my grandma was very short.)
This trip reminded me of the importance of helping others and that although I do not have a lot either, I am still much richer than those that I was able to help this last week. I am going to look at volunteering at the Boise Food Bank and the Boise Rescue Mission. This trip also reminded me that we don't need to travel very far to be able to greatly impact an area that has a large homeless and poor population. And it doesn't take much to be able to help another person.
