On the Porch
Onisha Ellis
When I was a child I had my heart set on being a missionary. As I pretended to sweep the floor in my makeshift outdoor playhouse, my mind pictured me sweeping out a tent somewhere in Africa. I was sweeping the floor for Jesus.Then I grew up, drew away from the church for a time, and put the dream aside.
A few years ago, my local church opened Compassion House, a food pantry ministry to help feed our small community. I was excited. Working in a soup kitchen or food pantry had been a desire of my heart since I had put aside the missionary dream. I asked if I could help and was disappointed when I was told they had all the help they needed. Several years pass, pastors and members moved on and I assumed Compassion House was still fully staffed. Then, the first of February, a call went out of a need for volunteers to help stock shelves in Compassion House. It was at an inconvenient time but I was determined to make it work and I did.
After the shelves were stocked, I asked about helping on the days they were open, the first and third Tuesday of the month. To my joy, they said I would be welcome! I have worked two times so far and loved every minute of it.
This is the description of Compassion House from the church website:
Compassion House exists to meet physical needs as well as spiritual needs. Our guests needing assistance will have the opportunity to sit and talk with a trained volunteer who will pray with them.
A new visitor to Compassion House is interviewed to determine their food needs and a top notch social worker is on site to assist with social and medical needs. Based on the interview each person is allotted a specific number of food items. Each time they check in, they are given a slip of paper with their name as well as the number of items they may choose.Then they are sent down the walkway to the room with the food. Our food pantry gives the individuals the opportunity to choose their items, rather than handing them a pre-packed bag and my job was greet them, usually by name and assist them with choosing items, bagging and offering help carrying their bags,
This week a young man came in and as he was collecting his items, his movements made me think of someone who might be high. I felt uneasy. Then as he gathered the last of his items, he thanked us and said his children were going to be so happy when they came home from school and had food to eat. That wrecked my heart.
Why am I sharing this? My church is not the only one in our small community who offers a helping hand of food and sometimes clothing to those in need. The top notch social worker spends time each week at several food pantries in town and her salary is paid through a foundation which gets its money from fund raising events. America has good and generous people and I hope to begin a weekly series titled “Helping Hands” to spotlight their efforts.
How about you? Do you know of a church or organization that offers a helping hand in your community? If you would like to share your story, please comment below and If you are one of our many international readers I would be delighted to read and share your stories too.
Old Things R New 
You know, this reminds me of something that happened yesterday. I live in a pretty affluent neighborhood and I was cleaning my basement. I have so many gently used toys that people could use for their own little kids. But for the life of me, I’ve not been able to find a place to donate it without extreme effort. So, I went to the local moms group on facebook, wrote “FREE” and posted a photo of all the items. So many moms begged me for the easel, the scooter, etc… they were so THANKFUL and I felt so good just giving it away. I think people forget that the act of compassion does more for the soul sometimes then they think.
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What a a great idea to use Facebook, Elyse!
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We have several outreach programs in our small community. Several of the churches have food pantries and/or meals which they spread over the week rather than all the churches having a supper the same night. There is a medical clinic and a homeless shelter plus clothing available, if needed. Even our church did its share for the military, having a chicken dinner with all proceeds going to the local veterans’ societies to help the wounded move forward. The first year we were able to raise over $6K, the following year, as more people learned about it, the church was able to raise over $15K.
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This is the kind of stories I want to share!
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These are good-news stories, and we need to tell more of them. My community has a number of organizations to help people who need it. My sons and I have spent many hours volunteering at the food banks, for example.
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I would love to share that story especially since your family volunteers too.
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These are the types of stories that I think we need to see more of in the media. The country needs to know there are giving & thankful people out there, instead of just evil.
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I’m so glad you wrote about this. It’s just a super-de-doper idea. The spell checker won’t let me say d-oooo- per. Anyhow, thanks for writing it. I like it very much and look forward to more of the same. I’ll see what I can find out about IRCM. I know they do a lot of things with food, but I don’t think they have a food pantry as such.
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Oh, wow, I knew there was a reason I liked you, Onisha! In my new Christian enthusiasm (at age 19) I wanted to be a missionary to Africa, too! It’s been humbling how God has used me over the years. There are many ways to serve Him, if we’ll just brighten the corner where we are, like you’re doing. 🙂
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I agree Katy, God uses us to serve wherever we are. I think our spirits click!
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Your story is such an encouragement to all of us to use our time and gifts to serve others. We can all make a difference if we’re just willing to sacrifice a little time and effort.
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Thank you Tim. Many churches are reaching out with no fan fare and I want to share their stories.
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