Cold hands, warm hearts—could be a bumper sticker for a network of organizations, churches, and volunteers who support our community’s homeless people on the coldest nights of the year. And this year has been really cold, with subfreezing temperatures on 25 of 31 nights in January alone.

Much of the heavy lifting is done by MUST Ministries and Transfiguration Catholic Church.

  • MUST’s Hope House is a fulltime shelter that provides housing for 136 residents. When overnight temperatures are expected to fall below 35 degrees, MUST also provides warm meals and respite beds for up to 70 additional men, women, and children.
  • When demand exceeds supply at MUST (and it always does when temperatures fall below freezing), Transfiguration steps up and provides warm meals and beds for up to 20 additional women.

FPC provides transportation—getting women back and forth between Hope House and Transfiguration. We have a small, but mighty group of volunteers—including 21 church members and four members from our community. Between December 1 and January 31, this group has:

  • Made 35 trips in our vans between Transfiguration and Hope House (often meeting in the church parking lot as early as 6:30 a.m. with temperatures in the teens);
  • Filled 162 volunteer positions; and
  • Provided transportation to 647 women who otherwise would have been spending the night in cars, storage lockers, doorways, etc.

    The joy of service is a real thing—and quite often we end up getting more than we give. For example, one morning in mid-January I visited with Maria during the 20-minute drive from Transfiguration to Hope House. Maria appeared to be in her early 20s; was one of the more profound and articulate people I have ever met; and she lives in a tent.

    • She keeps a journal—writing down her daily highs and lows and using that information to develop everyday skills for creating more highs and fewer lows.
    • She spends her days applying and interviewing for jobs (relying on computers available at MUST and libraries, and public transit). Her lack of transportation (and even a cell phone) complicates her efforts to find work, but she remains committed, upbeat, and hopeful.

      I did not learn what led to Maria’s recent homelessness, but I did learn about her plans to emerge from it.

    And in the meantime, she believes God is calling her to elevate the spirit, hope, and drive of the homeless community she now finds herself in.

    No words. . . but what a privilege it was to meet her.

    Written by Jeff Byrd