This Week at the Mission...

November 17 - November 23.

This week was defined by hard work, from clients all the way up to our president, getting ready for our annual Day of Thanks Celebration.  This is the 16th year the Mission has celebrated the Day of Thanks, and it was a wonderful event.  Mayor Menino, Governor Patrick, Jo Jo White (of the '76 Celtics Championship Team) and others helped us celebrate the occasion, and the Mission was able to provide more than 100 food baskets to families in need, in addition to serving more than 300 thanksgiving meals to the public.  While chaotic, the Day of Thanks always proves to be an exciting time as the Mission gets to serve the community and witness the gospel going forth through word and deed.

Check out the NECN news broadcast!

Photos from the Day of Thanks:

This Week at the Mission...

November 10 - November 16.

This is a short week for me; I'm only working 4 days and then flying home to South Carolina for an extended weekend.  I haven't been back to Winnsboro since last Christmas, and 11 months is too long to be away from your roots.  Luckily, I'll be able to get a double dose, as I'm flying back for Christmas in a little over a month.  

Even though the week has been short, it has been all but short from eventful.  The guy I wrote about last week - the guy making the weird comments to his sister - decided to leave on Monday, claiming some absurd resemblance of claustrophobia as the primary precipitate for leaving the program.  On Tuesday night, we found out that two of our clients had been in a long-standing relationship - 11 years; and, in our recovery program, relationships are a big deal.  They had been in the program for a little over 2 months, and were both doing fairly well in the pursuit of their recovery.  However, for two months to go by, to not say anything about the extensive past you've shared with another resident is not something we, as a staff team, take lightly.  Both residents were discharged first thing Wednesday morning, and the guy immediately got high. This is the reality of the work we do - many of our residents do not know how to cope with stress or how to deal with situations that are outside of their control.  The conclusion is that they pick up drugs or a drink to help numb the pain, and begin the cycle all over again.  The sad part is that these particular individuals have the knowledge necessary to lead sober lives - they just don't have the desire or the patience to weather the storm.  

Wednesday also witnessed the sign-ups for our annual Day of Thanks.  Last year, the 15th Annual Day of Thanks was a momentous occasion.  The Mission gave out more than 200 turkey baskets to needy families in the city, while also serving between 250 and 300 thanksgiving meals to members of the poor and homeless community.  This year, we expect to do the same.  The sign-ups are quite stressful, though, because there are more people than turkeys.  Our AmeriCorps Vistas, Meryl and Michelle, had to sit through the verbal abuse and be the bearers of bad news, facing reality head-on: the needs of our city's poor and homeless are sometimes greater than our means to provide for them.  

This Week at the Mission...

November 3 - November 9.

The community at the Mission continues to gel. We have a good group of guys and gals in house right now, and it makes a huge difference. Sure, there is everyday chaos that needs managing, but, overall, the residents here are supportive of one another and are striving, together, to break the cycle of addiction in their lives.
Thursday night, I found myself monitoring some phone calls for some of my clients. During one guy's call to his sister, the following remarks were made:

-random observations on religion: "when i'm in the shower, I look up and there's a tapestry that says "what would Jesus do?" And I wonder, 'What would Jesus do?' You know, cuz he was really on the ball a lot of the time."


-describing the word 'Gnarly:' "It basically means extreme, and a little bit scandalous. Like if you looked in the fridge and pulled out a block of cheese that was really moldy, you would say, 'whoa, that's gnarly.'"


For the record, there is no tapestry in the shower, but I did locate the tapestry in question, and it is in the bathroom, above the sinks. I guess this was an honest mistake.