Shelters for homeless need support
As we enter the cooler time of year, I recollect another time years ago when I and others helped form the Restart shelter for homeless people — currently still in operation.It had come to the attention of Stuart Whitney, pastor of Grand Avenue Temple United Methodist Church that a number of homeless people had frozen to death the past winter. I guess Stuart knew homeless people who attended his church and heard from them first-hand stories. One story was that some homeless people refused to go to the main large downtown shelter, City Union Mission, where attendance at a fundamentalist Christian sermon was the admission price. They preferred to sleep outside; hence some froze.
So Stuart summoned a group, perhaps 25 people, me included, and proposed to us that we establish a nonreligious based shelter for homeless people. It was to be in the basement of his old large church at Eighth and Grand. The church had a very small membership and was underused. Religion was not going to be offered or required of anyone who stayed the night.
Stuart recognized the humanity of the homeless, as we say, that of God in them. And, too, he felt it was not his place to push his beliefs on them. Although he wasn't a Quaker, I now realize he was very Quakerly with his ideas and beliefs.
The unseen, less fortunate in our midst, not just those we read about elsewhere in the country, deserve our thoughts and concerns, especially at this time of year. With the economic and political climate of our country as it is, these folks will especially need our help this winter.
Shelters are interesting places to spend time, even when not in need of their services yourself. They are usually very welcoming and friendly to all. They also need our help to continue giving their basic services: food, shelter, safety, human dignity.
— Rich Kaufman