Service Learning Log 2

At the Denver Rescue Mission I wasn’t greeted warmly. For some reason two other girls and I were not on their most recent list, although we had gotten confirmation emails. I felt like I was going to be more of a burden than a help. It turned there was actually lots to do. I cut tomatoes and mixed up salads and cut deserts and put them on trays for later. After about half an hour the volunteers were invited to eat with some of the homeless men. While we were eating, Ray, the mean who seemed like he was in change came and sat with us. He filled us in on all sorts of facts about homelessness and what the mission does. We went back to work for a while, cutting more deserts and covering them in garbage bags so they’d stat fresh. It looks like Safeway and King Soopers are pretty generous and donate most of the prepackaged items that the shelter gets. Around 6 Ray called us up. The men who wanted beds for the night were beginning to file in and he wanted to give us a tour of the mission and see the clients. We saw that the night before 276 men slept there. To sleep there the men need to attend a church service. They have a separate service for Spanish speaking men. We saw the clinic and Ray explained his rehab program to us. It had begun to rain so he insisted on driving us to the light-rail station. He encouraged us to come back during the lunch shift so we can interact with the clients more.
I hate to admit this, but I didn’t take much more information about the homeless, than I already knew, away from my experience at the Mission. Ray tried to give us the best, fullest experience possible, but he too knew that making salads and preparing deserts wasn’t going to be very meaningful. To better understand the men who go to the Mission I think I would need to go back to volunteer during the lunch shift, which I want to do.
What was most impressed upon me was how dedicated Ray is to the men who come to the Mission. As he showed us around and interacted with the men it was clear how much he cares. I walked away, not thinking about the clients exactly, but about what they would do without people like Ray. Would someone else selflessly take over his post? There were many other helpers at the Mission but no one else greeted clients by name and joked around with them. So, although I didn’t learn about the homeless specifically, the experience wasn’t a waste because I came away with a greater appreciation for the Rays of the world.