Serving a meal at the Inn requires the work of a large number of people. We are blessed with an abundance of local volunteers who come on a weekly or monthly basis and act as servers, bussers, dishwashers and cooks for the meals. In addition, there are groups that come from far away parishes, such as Canton, Massachusetts or New Hampshire on a regular basis, stay for a weekend or more, and help out. We have housing on the block for groups of 8-10 individuals. Last week we had a group arrive from St. Francis of Assisi parish in Raleigh, NC. Mark and I have visited that parish on several occasions and attended a hunger conference there last February, so we had a connection with the group. Several members of the group were engaged in the Just Faith program at the parish; others had seen the announcement in the bulletin and were interested in serving at an inner city soup kitchen for a few days.
It is a positive experience for me when we have a group come for a few days. First of all, it allows others the chance to serve in a way that they might not be able to in a more affluent setting. The enthusiasm of the group rubs off on us and makes us more attuned to the guests and their needs. I was particularly happy to have two women from the group go with me to St. Benedict's Thrift Shop and assist the guests, especially the men, who were in need of coats, shoes and pants. When I am at the shop, I cannot leave the front desk area because I am the only one allowed to handle the money. So often people come in, want something, but will leave saying that there is not anything in their size. By having extra volunteers present, customers were able to find the things they needed in their size. Finally, this group came while the Team was on retreat. The ten people from St.Francis could be used at the meal to help replace the ten Team members who were gone.
The sheets were barely dry, and another group arrived, this time from Bonaventure College in New York. I believe that these groups get much more than they give when they spend time here in Kensington.
Dear Thea and Mark,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your very kind words. All of us from the St. Francis of Assisi delegation felt that we received so much more than we gave last week while we were at the Inn. Thank you for all you do...you are truly an inspiration. I hope you and all the staff and guests at St. Franis Inn have a happy Thanksgiving.
John Budway