4/22/2006
They Also Serve, Who Only Stand and Wait
I haven't said enough about the many IHN volunteers that serve at the churches. They're the engine that makes the organization run. They take time out to cook for us, chaperone us at night, make sure we understand something about how the churches run, make sure things stay neat and orderly, make sure the kids don't get too rowdy, make sure the trips between the churches and the Day Center are safe and risk-free, are ready with the histories and backgrounds of the churches, communicate and coordinate schedules with the Day Center staff and each other, and another billion little things that go one behind the curtain that grease the wheels of IHN. Yes, even providing a sympathetic ear when the weight of our situation presses down just a tad too hard. And I've met an astonishing number who are quick to provide job leads or make employment inquiries on our behalf. you heard of "networking"? Well, there you are.
I've written before of my guilt at these fine people taking time out from their families to help us through a difficult situation. In one of his columns, the News & Record's Doug Clark encouraged me to put my mind at ease about the service of the volunteers. It took me a while, but I finally realized that the volunteers do this out of a sense of wanting to help others and extend a helping hand to someone that's fallen. In other words, they Get It. Would that so many others of us in this age of hip-hop, Lookin' Out For Number One and Death to [insert whatever group or race has drawn the ire at the moment]. Would that more of us would Get It.
I've written before of my guilt at these fine people taking time out from their families to help us through a difficult situation. In one of his columns, the News & Record's Doug Clark encouraged me to put my mind at ease about the service of the volunteers. It took me a while, but I finally realized that the volunteers do this out of a sense of wanting to help others and extend a helping hand to someone that's fallen. In other words, they Get It. Would that so many others of us in this age of hip-hop, Lookin' Out For Number One and Death to [insert whatever group or race has drawn the ire at the moment]. Would that more of us would Get It.
# posted by Cybermancer @ 8:04 PM 
