On September 12, 2014, my church and I sponsored an outreach program in the Homeward Bound Shelter here in Grand Junction. Our cause was to help our fellow man and share our faith. Even for one event, and hopefully more in the future, we wanted to let the people in the shelter know that they weren't invisible to the community and that there are many people that care. We served them dinner, pizza and chicken, to go-to Friday night meal, and afterwards, held a bible study for those who wanted to listen and learn a little bit about out church.
For the purpose of my CAS Project, I focused on the service part of the event and left the bible to my ministers. I contributed to this pre-planned even by establishing relationships with the people there. I made conversations, asked them how they were doing, and get to know them not just as homeless people but as equals, individuals with their own story to tell. What surprised me about talking to some of them was that instead of telling me how they were, they told me how grateful they were for our help. This gave me a wake-up call because for people who don't have much, they have plenty to be thankful for. Their gratitude opened my eyes to all of the things I should not take for granted like having a home that I can call my own and have three meals a day on a regular basis because there are plenty of other people who don't have the opportunities that I have. Instead of giving, I felt like I was receiving, but what I received wasn't something tangible or materialistic. It was a piece of wisdom that is so universal yet, ironically, often taken for granted. The act of serving them dinner seemed so small compared to what they have given me. However, now I know better than to call it a small thing because some of them, unfortunately, might not have gotten any food if it weren't for us. That was also when I realized that have made a difference.
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