Under The Bridge

Under the Bridge is a ministry that not only serves the physical needs of the homeless on Skid Row but also the spiritual and emotional needs. After four times of serving food with Under the Bridge, I finally pushed myself out of my comfort zone. Every time the director asks who would like to work in the food line, I eagerly, and quite obnoxiously, wave my hand around so I can get away with just serving food and not actually talking to people.  I felt safe and comfortable behind the table. I have not had the confidence to talk to people and hear their stories.  So this Wednesday, with much encouragement from my fellow volunteers, I decided to push myself out of what I am comfortable with and agreed to interact with those we were feeding. Immediately after I agreed, I couldn’t believe it, I kept asking myself why in the world had I agreed to start conversations. 

         The previous day I felt like I kept getting hit with little things that kept bringing me down and kept me dwelling in sadness rather than joy. So I had been looking forward to the comfort and familiarity of the serving table and only having to give a smile rather than a word of hope to the homeless. But God does not want you to become comfortable; comfort leads to complacency. God cannot use those who are complacent and comfortable.   As Christians, we should strive to be Christ-like in everything we do, so we should always be growing and pushing ourselves to be Christ-like.  So, armed with a tract rather than a spoon, I came from behind the barrier in which I had found such comfort in the previous times, and paired with another volunteer named Carrie, we walked around talking to the residents of Skid Row.

        

         The first couple of people we talked to were not very friendly, but then we came across a resident named Deborah. She was reserved at first, but then later told us it was because she wanted to see how we would react to her demeanor.  We started talking about anything, and then started to get into the Scriptures. In talking to her, we found out that her church picks her up and brings her to church, and she is a backup Sunday School teacher. She did not go into great detail about how she got there, in a state of poverty and homelessness, but it was interesting to see her say that she got there by her own choices and means. She knows that God will use this time of her life to reach a group of people that I cannot, because she will have a story to which they can relate. It was refreshing to see someone who was so planted in God yet is living in that circumstance.

         We also talked to a man named Thomas, who was a truck driver, but has not been able to find work recently. We asked him about how he ended up there, and he said that that was just a pit stop until he gets back on his feet. We then asked what his plans are now, and he said that he feels that God has called him to ministry to be a pastor.  Like Deborah, he knows that he can use this part of his life to reach those who I cannot, and God is in control of his life. He will be able to reach those on Skid Row as well as people in the same circumstances and elsewhere. His story and journey is more relatable then mine.

                  It seemed that I had no reason to be nervous because God brought those people so that I can see that He is in control, and no matter how nervous I am with something out of my comfort zone, H e will always be there with me. So yes, I don’t enjoy pushing my boundaries and coming out of my comfort zone, but I know that God does it for a reason. Not only does He do this when I go on outreaches, but also with my work at the Dream Center. Before I came, I did not like praying out loud; I was just not confident in my prayers, and part of my job at the Dream Center is praying for people on the phone. When I first started I was almost in tears, because I did not want to do it. I was so nervous, but again He would put people on the other side of the phone line that knew exactly how to encourage me. I know that He is always stretching me so that I am more prepared for what life will throw at me and so that in any situation, I am able to keep the faith and do God’s will. 

~Tessa

Without Help, It’s Too Bad To Be True

The past couple Thursday afternoons I have been able to help Project Prevention as they make food deliveries to families at risk of losing their children to foster care due to poverty. Until my recent experience, I did not realize this was even possible, and I wish it were not.

Our first stop was a single mother living with her two children. Before she found help at The Dream Center and Project Prevention, she and her young boys had little food and no furniture, including beds. After listening to her story and seeing how much she loves her children, I cannot imagine the pain she has already gone through and the thought of potentially losing her very own boys. On a daily basis she is faced with more pain and anxiety I have ever felt in my entire life, but her smile week-after-week challenges me and my attitude.

Next, we stop on a corner occupied by a small convenience store. After heading up a narrow stairway leading to apartments above the property, we knock on the door of another single mother living with her five children. That alone would be difficult for almost any single parent, but as I unloaded the food on a small table that could tightly seat two, I notice there is only one bedroom in the apartment. I realize this entire family lives in an area about the size of my college dorm room!

While I thought about my college years, I spoke with the eldest child, a boy who is going to be a senior in high school in the fall. He told me about his plans after high school, which includes attending college in the Los Angeles area next year. I was impressed by his attitude and the fact that he did not use his current situation as an excuse.

After receiving many “thank you’s” from the grateful family, we made our way to a few more stops before heading back to The Dream Center. Sadly, each one had a similar sad story of parents struggling to provide the basics for themselves and their children. Thankfully, as I have seen so many times, whether with Project Prevention, on Skid Row, or in the housing projects of South Central Los Angeles, there is a sense of peace and hope in those with so little to the naked eye. But through sharing Christ and taking the families to church, many have found the strength needed to make it through each day.

Thanks to those who work with Project Prevention every day and those who support the ministry, we are able to give hope to those with not much else.

- Jesse

"Because You say so, I will"

Looking back on my first month as an intern at The LA Dream Center I realize how much God has directed my life to this point. A couple of months ago I was living close to family and friends in the Midwest and had a great job, but I felt I was missing out on something.  Ever since my first visit to The Dream Center I felt a strong desire to come back and serve full-time. After graduating from college two years ago and working in the field I studied, I still did not feel like I was where I needed to be.

 

In the fall of 2009 I finally decided to follow the dream I had years ago, and I applied to become a one-year intern.  During that summer, I was reading Luke 5:5 where Jesus told Simon to lower the nets after a long night of fishing with nothing to show for it. Simon, probably frustrated and ready to quit, responded so simply, “Because You say so, I will.” Like Simon, moving to LA was not an easy decision or made the most sense, but I do not regret listening to the voice of God.

 

We often hear God is always with you and has a plan for your life, but it’s another thing to experience it yourself. Once I arrived at The Dream Center, I learned that I would be working in the Marketing Department, which is what I studied in college. Also, upon arrival I learned that a friend from college was coming to volunteer, and we have since become roommates.  After seeing these two works of God within my first month here, I am excited to see what is coming up in my future.

 

If you are thinking about coming out to The Dream Center to volunteer, I would recommend that you first—pray. You need to talk with God so you can hear what His plan is for you. In Proverbs 16:9 it states, “the Lord determines our steps;” we need to let Him. Secondly, don’t be afraid to take a risk. A piece of advice I received in college is, “If you are given an opportunity, say ‘yes,’ and learn as fast as you can.” This is something I try to put into practice in my life.

 

If God has put a desire on your heart, pray about it and don’t be afraid to take a risk. When facing a big decision remember that God has watched over your life through today, don't think He will stop now.

 

- Jesse

Full Circle on a Homeless Block

On July 1, 2010, I went to Skid Row on an outreach with Under the Bridge, which was a bittersweet moment. Next week, I will be concluding my three and a half year internship at The Dream Center. I first came to The Dream Center in May 2005 on a short-term missions trip, which lasted a week. Long story short, I flew back to New York (my home state) and the experience was imprinted in my heart. The images that I saw on Skid Row were etched in my memory as I lived 3,000 miles away, and part of me felt like I would eventually go back to The Dream Center and help with the ministries again.

 

Just over a month after graduating from college, I was back on a plane to Los Angeles in February 2007 to become a full-time intern. I cannot put into a short blog all that I have experienced during these past several years, but it has all been life-changing to say the least. When people ask me what I learned at The Dream Center and living in the city of Los Angeles, I’ve said that I have learned to be a leader. I am very much an introvert, and God has taken me out of my comfort zone and has stretched me to have more confidence and really depend on Him.

 

I didn’t go back to Skid Row as soon as I started my internship. I was placed in the Teen Discipleship girls’ home, which was a blessing because I wanted to work with youth. Sure, I had worked with teenagers in the past, including my home church’s youth group and an outreach to the Lower East Side of Manhattan that I did while I was in college, but I was not totally ready for DCTD! Though it was a challenge for me to be authoritative and confront bad behavior and even verbally encourage those girls, God gave me the grace to do so, and I am so thankful for the year that I spent there.

 

When I switched over to the Marketing department, I was glad because I was wondering how I could use my love for writing at The Dream Center. Needless to say, I have been able to put my writing abilities to use, and in the process, have learned so much from those that I have worked with. In addition, I have interviewed well over 100 people whose lives have been positively impacted by the outreaches and ministries of The Dream Center. I heard so many stories, each unique and impacting, all different ages and walks of life. South Central. Rampart. East L.A. Chinatown. Hollywood. Venice. SRO Hotels. Beverly Hills. Skid Row…

 

It’s hard not to get choked up when I think of what an amazing opportunity that I have had to be at The Dream Center. Of course, nothing is perfect here, but I have learned from the good and the bad experiences, and I am grateful for each of them. I know that moving on from here, I will have much to take with me, whatever God has for me.

 

So, I did my last outreach (at least for now!) in Skid Row this week; the very place that gripped my heart on that short-term missions trip. On the way there, I watched, almost as if it were the first time: seeing short-term volunteers with their brooms and barrels, cleaning up garbage on the sidewalks. Food trucks headed to their destination packed with groceries to feed the community. The Dream Center taking over L.A.!

When we got to Skid Row, I just walked around with a couple of other volunteers, inviting people to come get a hot meal to eat on the corner of 6^th and Crocker. While there, I saw a few people that I had interviewed for Marketing stories, including two that I hadn’t seen in basically a year. It was as if, in that moment, my time at The Dream Center was beginning to come full circle.

 

Though it’ll be kind of hard to leave this place, which has become home, it is time. And I want to encourage volunteers who may already be here or are considering coming, it is a great opportunity to learn and become selfless as you address the needs of others. Find a need and fill it, and find a hurt and heal it.

 

Thanks to all who made this time possible. I love you.

 

Poeticize for Christ,

Shameka Hamlet

A Family with Eleven Kids Receives Mattresses from Project Prevention

When his wife passed away in 2008, Manuel became a single dad to his eleven children- 4 girls and 7 boys. For many years, this family lived in a single-bedroom apartment, which only had a living room, kitchen and restroom. Everyone in the household managed to cram into a tight space; however, they slept on the floor. As a widower, Manuel supported his children through his restaurant job, but his income was not enough to relocate his large family into a more spacious home.

 

Moving to America from Guatemala 25 years ago, Manuel and his wife raised their children in Los Angeles. After Manuel’s wife died from liver failure two years ago, social workers became concerned about the family’s living conditions, and saw the horrendous circumstances that they had called home. Manuel’s children range from the ages of three to nineteen. The youngest was just a baby when his mother died. When The Dream Center found out about Manuel’s family, they could not ignore the overwhelming need, and brought essential aid to each family member.

 

Since the start of this year, Manuel and his children have been able to move into a two-bedroom apartment. On May 19, 2010, The Dream Center’s Project Prevention ministry took a truck loaded with beds to this family, who had become accustomed to sleeping on the floor. This was a massive improvement for Manuel and his children, many of whom never had a mattress of their own. They can now rest comfortably and have better mornings when they wake up after a good night’s sleep.

 

Along with having their basic needs met and a homey place to live, this family has become closer to each other and to God. Though each day has its own struggles, Manuel and his children have experienced the lovingkindness of Project Prevention volunteers. Thanks to the sacrificial offerings of Dream Center supporters, Project Prevention is keeping families unified. Because of all of the supplies that this ministry team brought to Manuel’s home, which many homes can take for granted, he and his children can stay together without fret of being placed into the foster care system. They can now have a renewed sense of hope.