Meet Our Summer Interns

 Hello Everyone,

     As you may or may not know, Summertime is here and that means that we have a brand new batch of interns! The individuals that we have had the pleasure of bringing on board are all truly stellar in their own right, and each one of them possess skills, talents, and dreams that I believe will  benefit our community in substantial ways! As you read through their bios I hope that you too will feel inspired and will join us in praying for our interns as they serve this Summer.

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Morgan Erickson

I have been blessed with the opportunity to serve as the Neighborhood Engagement
intern for Kingdom Causes this summer, and I am incredibly encouraged and excited for what
this summer holds. I am currently heading into my third year at Westmont College, where I am
studying Psychology and English and running Cross Country and Track.

I just returned home from a study abroad program in Israel/Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt where I studied much of the political conflict going on there, met some of the most wonderful people, and was immensely challenged to pursue a life that advocates for those whose voices are not heard and pursues justice wholeheartedly. I don't know exactly what form this will take in my future career, but I am looking into Social Work and Human Rights Activism.

That being said, I am thrilled to intern at Kingdom Causes this summer because of the
way they pursue these values locally. While I loved being abroad and having my passions
sparked, I also think it is essential to work toward these goals in our own communities and see
the needs of those living right around us, as well as their gifts and strengths.
I admire the way Kingdom Causes humbly works to better the city of Bellflower through the
gifts of its own people and remind all people of their value and capabilities. I am excited to work
in a place that pursues justice, love, and grace locally and be a witness to Christ and His
Kingdom.

As the Neighborhood Engagement Intern, I will be working at the KCB Summer Sports
Camp as well as working around the office on different projects, and learning more about social
work. I hope to be challenged in this process as I know there is a lot to to learn, but I also hope
that I can be encouraged through the interactions I will get to have with people and the program
as a whole. I hope to learn ways to translate my compassion for people into meaningful and
impactful work. I also hope to build relationships with the kids at the camp, and leave with a
better understanding of what community development looks like and how to love people in my
own community better. I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity and for what is ahead, and
excited to see where it will go.

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Natalie Alvarez

Hello! 

My name is Natalie Alvarez and I am 23 years old. I decided at about the age of ten that I wanted nothing more than to help people. I am a CSU, Long Beach graduate who will soon begin my final year with the teaching credential program. In a years time, I will be a credentialed elementary school teacher! My bigger dream is to one day open a shelter for families who need a temporary safe haven. As a future educator, I hope to run a tutoring or teaching program out of that same shelter so that parents can work or do what they need to do without having to worry about their children. I want to be someone who can inspire others to pursue their dreams despite the obstacles they may face in life. God and my faith have played such a large role in my journey through life, and I would not have made it to where I am without that faith. With my husband so far away on deployment, I hope I can make him proud through all that I will be doing. I am grateful for all of the support I receive from both my husband and my family for they are my inspirations and biggest supporters.

                I am excited to be joining the KCB intern team as it allows me to be a bigger part of the community that I have spent 10 years of my life in. I pray that this internship opens doors for me in a way that helps me grow as a person and educator. The next 10 weeks are going to challenge me in every way that it possibly can, and I am up for that experience. Thank you for this opportunity, I can’t wait!

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Drake Steele

Being the first child in my family I was always really observant of others actions, especially of those who were older than myself, admiring traits that had caused them to be confident with their actions, caring, open-minded, and fully transparent with others not discriminating in any type of way that they were superior than one another. It also gave me many examples of what not to do allowing a smaller margin of error  already knowing how certain actions would play out. Having this mindset with the many environments I went through at a young age, and up until now, has molded me into the person I am today allowing myself to take a completely different route than most at nineteen years old.

Ever since I was a young child I've witnessed many people struggling with mental and physical health problems that not only affected their lives but as well as others that loved and cared for them.  This has compelled me to take action within my family, friends, individuals in the surrounding community, and anyone who is willing to seek help or in need of an example trying my best to mirror the same influencers here on earth as well as God up above allowing me to get to where I am today. I want to make it clear that my purpose on this earth is to benefit the people by spreading love everywhere in any way shape or form to bring all of us together. Keeping this on the forefront of my goals the work I hope to obtain while doing the homeless outreach and housing solutions are already described in the title of my work and I only hope to maximize the work to its fullest potential  infiltrating the communities  helping  as many people as we can.

The reason I chose to take this internship with Kingdom Causes in Bellflower was definitely because of the location you guys were based out of  and  hearing the staff talk about their job’s  at the event thrown at Neighborhood Christian Fellowship seeing that they were truly there to help others who are in need. I hope to gain a new outlook on life as I take on this intership only wanting  to add more value to the team and continue to see Kingdom Causes growth in helping the community. I’m excited to see the transition of myself and the team as we tackle objectives within these next couple of months.

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Alicia Chavez

            Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to give back to my community. From working with shelters, homeless feedings, and community outreach, I knew there was a greater purpose out there for me. God has blessed me with the love for Biology and the love for helping our homeless neighbors. I hope to grow in this internship with Kingdom Causes and get to see the community grow with my input as well as the other interns.

             Working along side with OPHS, I want to engage with strengthening the lives of the people who live in the community and reach out to those in other neighboring cities. Also, I will be working with the St. Johns Mobile Clinic and hoping to gain experience with the medical field and community outreach as I engage with the community.

            Through all this, I hope my walk with the Lord continues to grow. Not only does this internship reflect on my help towards others, but also personally. I want this internship to mold me into the woman that God has called me to be and to be the light in the world that doesn’t stop shinning for others.

Shalom

Translating words from other languages can be a tricky business. The challenge is that language is not just about matching words, it is about interpreting expressions of culture. Like many other words, the word shalom can have multiple meanings depending on the context. Traditionally the word can be a way to say both hello and goodbye, but it can also to refer to a desire for peace.

If we want to get into broad-based theoretical discussions about meaning, we can ask a lot of complicated questions. Is shalom a place? A destination? A state of being? Will we know when we arrive at shalom? Or is it like the Holy Spirit? Is shalom an elusive wind, restless and always moving? Are we called to pursue shalom, though we may never reach a point of personal satisfaction or world peace? Perhaps shalom is about making peace with our own holy discontentedness, an ever-present quest to lay our burdens at the feet of Christ and seek his kingdom each and every day.

Let’s get practical for a moment. Life can be busy and stressful. It can be hard to escape the realities of the moment and dream of nebulous, seemingly impossible goals of societal harmony. World peace seems to somehow work out at the end a feel-good movie, but it doesn’t always translate to the daily grind of angry people and broken families. In addition, scripture tells us that our sinful nature is always going to be a huge barrier to reconciliation and true progress on any level.

Seeking shalom, it would seem, has a major set of challenges.

And yet, thanks to the grace of God, there is always hope. Incredible, inspiring hope. John 16:33 says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” That verse provides amazing reassurance, and a reason to keep working towards the restoration of God’s kingdom here on earth. We experience a lot of failure here at Kingdom Causes Bellflower for the simple reason that life happens. Despite the difficulties and the daily heartaches, we keeping working towards a goal of community transformation. It takes diligence, patience, and the willingness to sometimes work tirelessly with one person at a time.

As you go about your day, don’t be afraid to dream big. There are a lot of needs out there, and that can be discouraging. There are also countless opportunities to pursue relationships and thriving neighborhoods. Ask God where you can be used, and how your gifts can be utilized to show love to your neighbors.

Shalom.

Blind, Deaf, Hungry

A few weeks ago, we received the preliminary result on the LA County Homeless Count--and it was devastating.  Our corner of the county increased by 50% over the last year.  While some of that increase can be attributed to more thorough counting, we can't deny that we are seeing more and more homeless people in our cities.  

The heartbreaking thing is that it's not just statistics--it's real people who have names and stories.  Some of them have families who are worried sick over them, but their untreated mental illness keeps them roaming the street.  Others never really had family: either their parents had their own addictions and illnesses that prevented them from caring, or they were abandoned to a broken foster system years ago.

Yesterday it seemed like everyone who walked in our door was in crisis.  It made the results of our homeless count feel unbearable.

Lenny*, a homeless neighbor I've known since I first starting working with KCB 10+ years ago, stumbled in.  "Chrissy, I can't see!  I'm going blind.  I haven't been able to see for months.  I can't do this anymore."  He was desperate, covered in urine, and scared.  I'd never seen him this frail before.  We connected him with an appointment with a doctor the next day, but it felt like we put a small bandaid on a gaping wound.  

An hour later, Yolanda* walked in.  She's humiliated by her homelessness and hides it from her family because she feels their own health and financial issues are too great to also handle her crisis.  She's working as much as she can, but does not make enough to afford even the cheapest trailer or studio in this area.  She confesses that she's had a fever for a few days and hasn't eaten.  "I'm so embarrassed to ask this--but do you have any food?  I am so hungry."  Just minutes before she walked in, a local Pastor had dropped off hot lunches that were left over from a local school.  We typically do not accept food donations at our office, but I think God knew that Yolanda would be walking in needing exactly that.

An hour after Yolanda left, Tom* walked in.  Tom is mostly deaf but his only hearing aid was damaged by sleeping out in the elements.  "I missed my appointment!!!  The judge said I'd go to jail if I missed my appointment!  And I broke my hearing aid.  I can't do this anymore!" He was frantic and shouting.  The volume of his voice was high both from his lack of hearing and his anxiety.  We tried to calm him down and get to the bottom of what appointment he was referring to, but he couldn't calm down.  "I hate having to depend on other people," he said as tears rolled down his face.

My heart broke yesterday.  

The Bible records Jesus healing the blind and the deaf--and I've never wanted so badly to see God do just that.  But often we do not see healing as quickly as we would like, and we're left feeling the heaviness of our broken world.

In the meantime, we grapple with Jesus' words:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free.

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. 

*Names changed