The Denver Resue Mission
Date of Shift: May 1, 2008
Hours worked: 1.5 hrs
In order to get a better feel for service learning in the homeless community, I helped to prepare a meal at the Denver Rescue Mission. As I arrived at the building, I was a little surprised at the location. Though there was group of dingy looking people milling around on the corner, there were no other signs that this was a gathering place for the homeless. Other than the “Jesus Saves” sign above the door, there was no indication that the doorway leading into the building would soon be crammed with hungry men, women and children. I walked in and was slightly surprised. While I had inadvertently assumed that there would be a prim receptionist, instead I found a group of rough looking men, talking and joking in the hallway. As I was led down to the volunteer check-in desk, I felt horribly out of place; not because I felt more privileged than any of these people, but because they were far more comfortable and at home there than I was. I meet N., who is in the second step of an alcohol and drug rehabilitation program. Now, he is paid to work at the mission, and he also can hold another job too. He is in charge of the volunteers who have come to prepare the evening meal. As I chopped tomatoes and mix salad dressing, I listened to the staff tease each other. I assume that most of these men are also in a program like N. Though my jobs seemed pretty menial, I was assured multiple times that I was doing a great service to the Mission.
Though the whole experience was new and different, the moment that was most informative and touching came in the form of unexpected kindness. One of the staff members, the chef for the night’s meal, was very concerned that the other volunteers and I were thirsty. He insisted that we drink his favorite kind of juice and searched the place for cups and ice so we could enjoy it “the right way.” As we started speaking with him, he told us that at one point in his life he had been a famous chef in Montreal. He was excited to learn that we were students at DU, because he, too, had attended the university. He spoke without a tinge of sadness or even nostalgia about the restaurants he had owned and the places he had traveled to learn his trade. To me, this conversation was both sad and inspirational. It was as though this man, who has clearly fallen on hard times, resented nothing; he told us his life story free of emotion, simply as if he were giving a weather report. He was inspiring because he was legitimately happy with where he was and seemed genuinely happy to meet us. I think it was at this moment that I knew (well, I had always “known” but it was here that I truly felt it) that we were just two people sharing stories - it did not matter that I was there to “help” people like him, or that his life had essentially been made into charity case – at a very basic level we were just people.
Even though my experience at the Denver Rescue Mission did not involve much interaction with the homeless population, the contact I did have was very positive. It was good for me to walk into the building a feel uncomfortable and it was even better that I walked out feeling as though I had made a friend. By putting myself in an uncomfortable situation, and then forcing myself to become comfortable with it, I learned more about the Rescue Mission then I would have had I felt that it was my right to “save” the homeless. Academically I am not sure I learned much, I really did not focus on what I would write here, but I think the experience (however short though it was) did help in my personal and civic growth. It was eye opening to work with the homeless population in a way in which I was not “helping” them, but they were directing me on what job to do next. This is important, especially when working with programs like Project Homeless Connect, because it takes away that “save the world stigma” from the position of a volunteer. Instead, this experience taught me that we are all just people, no matter the role you put us in. Going into Project Homeless Connect, and in any volunteer position really, it is important to always remember this fact because there is a lot to be learned from the people whom you a meant to be “teaching.”
No comments:
Post a Comment