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| The neighbors voted to send the proceeds to help build a well in Africa to provide clean water. We're going to send this picture with the check in December. Look how proud and excited everybody is in this picture! |
I got a call the other morning from my friend Justin. A family that he has known for several years through his youth ministry told him that they were being evicted. This mom of three kids between the ages of 9-14 had been paying $650 a month to rent a travel trailer. When she lost her house cleaning job that was paying her under the table, she could no longer pay the rent. Her neighbor has offered her the back of her truck to sleep in for the night and that might be where they end up staying.
Justin called me because in his words, “that is unacceptable.” He wants to help the family but doesn’t know what resources are available to the family and he is trying to get his church to do something about it but that bureaucratic process will be a long one which will end up with help being too little, to late.
The frustrating thing is, I don’t really know what to do either. Despite the fact that social workers in our organization deal with families like this everyday I have little help to offer. If they do not fit our relatively narrow qualifications for immediate financial, assistance we have no place to send them.
The reality is there is NOTHING in our immediate area that is set up to help families like this. Evicted, broke, out of work… I want someone or something to blame for this dilemma. I jump automatically to the family, they should have called sooner, they must have some sort of addiction stuff going on, they must be lazy.
The reality is stark though. Whatever the cause is of this family’s crisis, our local system in Bellflower has nothing for this specific family. 211, the LA county resource call center, will refer her to a shelter out of the area and or give her access to hotel vouchers for a few nights but there is nothing after that. What is the answer? Shelters are expensive financially and socially. Immediate financial assistance will not really help in the long run because of her eviction. What the family needs is a LOCAL place for at least 3 months were they can land long enough for mom to get a job and the kids don’t have to leave their school.
What will we as God’s people in this city do? We have resources. We have people. We have money. We have buildings (approximately 30 church buildings with countless classrooms that sit empty 90% of the week.) I wonder what Jesus feels about that? With hurting and poor neighbors all around us, is Jesus pleased with our clean and tidy classrooms that sit empty, preserved for telling Bible stories to the kids of the saints a couple of days a week?
Would it be possible to set up a Hospitality Network in Bellflower like this one? http://www.familypromise.org/ihn-video What do you think?
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Second servings were being passed around the dinner table in my parents’ backyard when my dad broke into a loud laugh. “Son” he says to me, “all those years of mowing my lawn, I didn’t expect it to be job training!”
We shared a laugh, but as I think about it now I am struck by something, isn’t that where most of us received our “job training”? Someone who cared a lot about us invested time, taught us the ropes, and showed us how to do work with excellence. That investment was priceless and our success today is in part due to those people.
At Good Soil Industries, we’re wrestling with the question, “what about the people who didn’t have that upbringing? How will they come to succeed?” It's through daily work and discipleship that God's people are teaching the Good Soil participants the lessons that many of us learned in the homes we grew up in. Timeliness, respect for authority, to wear a clean uniform, to work with excellence; and as the guys begin to internalize these lessons they gain a sense of pride in themselves and in their work. They become successful employees and doors open that were not possible before.
Susie doesn’t fit my stereo-types about homeless people. She has got a college degree and is used to working two jobs at a high-paying employer in town. She’s used to having enough, she lives in a middle-class town amongst middle class neighbors.
But when Susie came to our office in April 2010 she was facing the reality of being evicted from her apartment and moving into her car with her daughter while struggling with chronic depression. You see, she’d lost her second job and had been placed on disability at her primary employer. Things looked really bad, little did she know things would get worse before they got better.
We were able to enroll Susie and her family in the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Rehousing Program (HPRP), a program that is designed to help families through rental and utility assistance when they fall behind because of economic hardship.
Susie was able to remain in her apartment with her children and with some coaching from Staci, her case manager (pictured above), she learned more about her rights as a renter. Empowered, Susie was able to work with her landlord to lower her monthly rental payments. Things were looking good. But then Susie was laid off by her primary employer.
I thank God that Staci was there to help, encouraging Susie to remain steadfast in her attempt to find a new place of employment, providing the family with just enough financial help to remain stable and housed.
The good news came today. After only a few months without work, Susie was offered a new position with her old employer. She’s following a monthly budget and housing sustainability plan, she has been able to cut costs and locate other community resources that weren’t previously accessible to her.
Susie’s family is going to be safe from the streets. We are so thankful for this innovative program that provides financial and emotional support to families who are not used to the difficulties this economy is presenting all of us with.
My name is Sarah Leck and I am one of the summer interns for Kingdom Causes. I have the opportunity to work once a week with the Homework Club for the summer. God has really been teaching me to value learning and education through these kids. The kids enjoy learning much more than I ever have. Even though some of them complain at first about doing activities, by the end they are so excited and want to keep going even after the time is over. One of these kids name is Jon. He is always reluctant at first to join in but by the end he is always saying, “Miss Sarah, I want more math problems!” This is amazing to see because I understand his reluctance. Going into my senior year of college, I am starting to lose my academic steam. Working with these kids has been a healthy reminder that God has blessed me with a great education. I should take any opportunity to learn more about the world God has created. I have been blessed by these kids and am so thankful for the opportunity to learn along with them.
