Churches have room amid cold
Published 11:15 pm Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Happy Advent! In the Christian tradition, we are awaiting the birth of Jesus with four weeks of preparation known as Advent — a time for us to reflect on the impact Jesus has had on the world as well as a time to consider the kind of impact we should be having.
All of us are dealing with another sort of “advent,” too — the coming of winter. Although the first day of winter is still several days away, winter weather has already arrived. Many nights have already been near or below freezing.
For most of us, this change in the weather is merely an inconvenience. We’ve had to hunt up the scarves and gloves we put away last spring, give ourselves an extra five minutes in the morning to warm up the car and scrape frost from the windows. But those without a warm, dry place to sleep face the possibility of sickness, frostbite or even death from exposure.
Last year, a group of churches in Lynnwood and Edmonds banded together to make sure their homeless neighbors had a safe place to sleep and warm meals to eat on freezing nights. Led by Pastor Eileen Hanson of Trinity Lutheran Church and key volunteers Marilyn Nadeau and Charlotte Lawson of Trinity and Bill Ellis of Edmonds United Methodist, these churches housed and fed 12-25 neighbors every night of an unexpectedly long freezing season.
The churches have activated the freezing shelter again this year and have already cared for homeless folks on several nights at Good Shepherd Baptist and at Trinity. Volunteers, who cook dinner and breakfast, prepare a sack lunch and stay up all night to ensure the safety of their guests, have come from the churches already mentioned as well as from Edmonds Unitarian, Maplewood Presbyterian, St. Thomas More and Holy Rosary. The Korean NEST consortium of churches has once again provided mattresses and funding, and funding has also come from Alderwood Community Church and the 21st District Democrats.
This effort to help would never have been accomplished without the help of many, many others. Special recognition should go to Assistant Chief Tod Gates and Fire Marshal LeRoy McNulty of the Lynnwood Fire Department, Emily Yim and Julie Moore of the Lynnwood Department of Neighborhoods and Mayor Don Gough and the Lynnwood City Council. Church leaders are looking forward to talking soon with city leaders in Edmonds so that we may resume utilizing church facilities in that city to address this growing need.
As we approach Christmas, we remember that Jesus was born in a temporary shelter when His parents were far from their home. We remember that He later said of Himself that, unlike the birds in their nests, He had nowhere to lay His head. As we approach Christmas, look for ways in which you, too, can help provide a warm place and a good meal for those in need.
The Rev. M. Christopher Boyer is pastor of Good Shepherd Baptist Church in Lynnwood.
