A Code Blue Thank You
By Albert B. Kelly
With the coming of spring,
I am now able to exhale and reflect back on the activities of our newly formed
Code Blue program. Looking back, it was a herculean task to be a part of
something so useful and so needed. For
Code Blue to succeed so many pieces had to fall into place to make our
partnership structure work and I am pleased to report that this part of our mission
was accomplished. Yet, in another way, the larger mission of Code Blue still remains,
as people continue to need help in any number of ways.
But as a starting point,
on the local level, never before have so many who are homeless and in obvious need
been able to partake in the generosity of so many individuals, government
leaders (both local and countywide), civic groups, clubs, fraternal
organizations, businesses, non-profit organizations, and most importantly our
churches and faith based organizations.
Each and every one of those
mentioned above contributed to make sure that the homeless had a place to
sleep, warm clothing, hot and nourishing food each night, clean blankets, pillows,
cots, and a warm space to shelter in on a nightly basis through the winter
months.
When the call went out,
many responded by the giving of themselves personally or with monetary
donations; some perhaps with a word of encouragement through the season. The
task of caring for the homeless is not an easy one; when you decide to take on
the task of feeding and sheltering this population, even on a temporary basis,
much could go wrong…multiply that risk by dozens each night and you get a sense
of what’s at stake here.
Each night when we opened
the warming center, the number who came for a hot meal was three times the
number of those who sheltered overnight at the warming center. So if we had 20
people sleeping at the warming center overnight, we would feed 60-70 in total.
I am happy to report that no
matter the number of hungry people, we never ran out of food. While some might not equate it to the parable
of the loaves and the fish; we had our own sort of miracle each night as our
resources seemed to multiply so that no one had to be turned away.
Looking back, I can say
that this work changed many of us who participated; it helped us to see how
grateful we should be to have a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. It taught the students who participated that
there is more to life that the latest mobile device and their place in the
pecking order among their peers. It allowed us older staff members to share their
talents and discover new and previously hidden gifts.
I have grown attached to
many of the volunteers who did not think twice before pouring themselves out on
the altar of service to another’s need. In fact, it got to the point where we
all looked forward to seeing each other and we actually missed one another when
one was absent.
Special kudos must be
given to the church leadership and the congregations of the various churches
who lent their facilities to this effort each night during the cold and snow of
this past winter season. These include Pastor
Ellen Rutherford of St Andrews Episcopal Church, the Salvation Army led by
Capt. James Stephenson and the Stephenson family, Pastor Rob Weinstein and the
members of Bethany Grace Church; who also allowed Pastor Howard Duncan and
Bethany Seventh Day Adventist Church to utilize their facility as part of Code
Blue.
These organizations formed
the backbone of the Code Blue program, providing space and resources for the
warming center on a night-by-night basis; trading off each week throughout the
winter months.
Special mention should be
given to Pastor Russell who was able to stand in for Capt. Stephenson on
numerous occasions when called on.
A more formal “thank you”
and a “wrap up meeting” for all our partners is still in the works as this
column space is much too short to mention the numerous contributors, donations,
and even prayers that helped make Code Blue a success.
I have said on several
occasions that I am so proud; not only of my community, but also of our surrounding
townships and our neighbors who made this past winter seem less harsh and a lot
more forgiving through their generosity. Form the bottom of my heart, I say
THANK YOU, and I hope we all made you just as proud by our initial success with
Code Blue.