This morning I had the opportunity to appear with Kim Bullard on Mark Montiel's radio show on AM 1440 to talk about Mary Ellen's Hearth at Nellie Burge Community Center. The visit was full of blessings, but one moment was unforgettable.
Nellie Burge Community Center was established over 100 years ago by what is now known as the United Methodist Women of what is now known as First United Methodist Church. Since then, it has been a beloved domestic mission agency of Alabama-West Florida Methodism and the global church. Its purpose has always been the same--to relieve the suffering of women and children in poverty. Its location and ministry model has changed several times, but its central mission has remained constant.
In recent years, Nellie Burge's central ministry has been a childcare facility. The need for this ministry declined when a nearby housing project closed and federal programs began to serve the same purpose. The board recently decided to close down the childcare center and reopen the center with a new focus that served the pressing needs of the community.
The new ministry, called Mary Ellen's Hearth (named after Mary Ellen Bullard, who invested much of her life to supporting Nellie Burge) will house up to ten homeless families in a long-term residential program. Families will learn life skills and be prepared for long-term self-sustainability. The facility is in the midst of renovations and a new director will begin work in January.
We discussed the ministry, its vision, our city's need for it, etc., for most of the program. Mark asked us "What kind of people find themselves homeless and will need a program like this?" We talked about how all kinds of people end up homeless for various reasons, that this program was not for families with substance abuse or domestic violence issues. And then Mark took calls.
One of the callers was County Commissioner Reed Ingram. He promised to make a donation, and then he explained why. He said that his own family had been homeless for several years during his teens. He described how they looked for places to sleep, places to bathe, and found ways to survive. Reed Ingram is a respected local official, a successful and prominent businessman, and runs a farm. He talked about how he would probably have ended up dead or in prison if his grandfather had not intervened and mentored him.
Everyone in the studio had tears in their eyes. The room was stunned. It was such a powerful moment and something I will never forget. It highlighted an under-recognized truth: While some people are poor because of drug addiction or lack of initiative or other reasons for which they might be blamed, no child is responsible for the situation that causes her to be homeless, and nearly anyone can be the victim of circumstances that leave them unexpectedly desperate. And with a little help at the right time from caring people, a child who seems to have no options might actually have unlimited possibilities.
Maybe someone will be calling a talk show years from now and will shock the audience by telling them, "I was homeless when I was a child. And I went to live in a place called Nellie Burge Community Center..."
No comments:
Post a Comment