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Dear Friends of Grace in Action Article
You Gotta Have Faith

Dear Friends of Grace in Action,

Article written by Steve (Vincent) Wyatt October 2006

The winter of 2005-2006 was one of the most severe winters ever recorded for the Davis/Woodland/Sacramento area.   Around Christmas and New Years, two large storms swept through this area, bringing with them non-stop rain and gusts of wind that were clocked at 55 miles per hour.  It was so cold in the mornings that people were breathing steam.

Most of the residents of Davis paid little heed to this fluctuation in the weather. It was the Holiday season and a time for joyous reunions with friends and family. But for the Homeless people who live here, the story was drastically different.  

        Caught out in the open, they had no choice but to brave the elements.  Their attempt to stay warm and dry failed miserably.  The wind was as unrelenting as it was merciless.  It ripped their tarpaulins and tents down, which let the rain in, which soaked their clothes and bedding, which became as cold as ice, which made everything miserable.  

        The hardship they endured was made exponentially worse at night, because at night and in the early hours before dawn, they had no place to turn to for help. When the storms finally receded, the Homeless people of Davis spent days getting their living-areas -and their lives, back together.   They crammed their wet clothes and sleeping bags into garbage bags, slung them over the handlebars of their bikes, transported them across town, and washed them at the shelter on H Street. The shelter did double-duty as a laundry and a place to acquire some much needed food.   Hot soup and warm bread were much sought after items, in the bleak December mornings.

Cindy Burger knows all about the day-to-day struggles faced by people dealing with homelessness.   She is the Director of Grace house; a local homeless shelter.  She has a kind smile.  Her blond hair is cut in what is known in the business world as a 'business woman's cut.' On any given day she is dressed in something smart, efficient, -yet comfortable. Whenever she comes around, things just have a way of getting done.   At one time she was a teacher; now she is the center of an agency dedicated top to bottom to making the lives of one's fellow human beings a little bit easier.

As outward appearances go, Grace House isn't elaborate or ostentatious.  It’s just a small, tan colored building standing by itself on the corner of 5th and D streets.  But inside its welcoming walls where the Down and Out of Davis congregate, three times a week. 

"I prefer not to use the term 'homeless,' Cindy says.  I use "people struggling with homelessness,' –instead."   "The term 'homeless', she adds, "only goes to reinforce the negative stereotype that society already has –and uses, to describe the people we work with." 

Every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday afternoon, The People gather at "Cindy's Place."   An assortment of bikes, new, old and in-between- gather on the lawn in front of the building.  As the afternoon wears on, more and more guests arrive. Most of them have come to find something to eat.   Some of them are on the lookout for a few items of clothing.  Many of them come to spend some stress-free time visiting with old friends.  Some of them come because they have nowhere else to go.   And a few of them come because it's the closest thing they will ever have –again, to being "home."

Inside the building, long, low-slung couches line three sides of a medium sized living room.   Plenty of light comes in through the large windows on the front and side walls. In time, -usually within a half-hour or so, people of all ages and descriptions fill the room.  Some are younger adults, full of energy and stories to share about their latest exploits. Others are older and more experienced.   Veterans of the Unbroken Asphalt, they keep to themselves and eat their lunch in peace. 

A few individuals are as energetic as they are outspoken. Boisterous to the point of being rude, they bond noisily with their Homeless brethren. As these conversations fill the room, there are always a few who prefer to remain outside on the front porch.   Those who can afford "commercial" cigarettes smoke Marlboros; those who can't, or who refuse to pay the sin-tax associated with today's cigarettes, smoke "rollies."  "Rollie's" are cigarettes that you make by yourself, with a pinch of tobacco and a square of cigarette paper.

Each of the people who visit Grace House is the same in Cindy's eyes. Each of them is an individual that deserves to be treated with compassion, and dignity, and respect.   No matter who he (or she) is, or what their life circumstances may be, or how they came to be in their day-to-day situation, according to the Grace House charter, every single one of them is loved by God.   It is doing his work that Grace House came into being in the first place.

Faith plays a critically important part in Cindy's work.  "Faith," she says, "-is everything."   There have been many times she says, when the House was in need of critically needed resources: and every time, -someway, -somehow, the resources came into being. "Say for example," Cindy goes on "if we needed donations of food, or winter gear for our guests (clothes, tents, backpacks)...a day or two later they come to us by way donations."

"God will provide," she says –with a gentle, knowing smile "he always does."  "For me, I have to have faith that the Spirit will provide.  It takes Faith to keep going, and doing what you're doing."  Every day is a miracle, for Grace House; a shelter that receives no city-sponsored funding.   Every day is a good day for the House, standing as it does on the front lines of the never-ending fight in Davis to address the needs of Homeless people.

Cindy tells a story of how one of the Houses' former clients continued the Faith.   He was so grateful for her programs' help that once he had "gotten back on his feet" he wrote a check out for $5,000 to Grace in Action. On another occasion, money to pay the next months rent was extremely tight, when seemingly out of nowhere, a donation of $10,000 came through the houses' front door.

These kinds of events are what Cindy calls "miracles." It's miracles like these –and many others large and small, she says, that help Grace House keep going.

"If it weren't for this place and the food we get here, I swear to God I'd probably starve!," says one of the shelter's old timers.   No one is bothering him –and that's the way he likes it. No one is even paying any attention to him.  Sitting by himself at the shelter's kitchen table, he takes his time eating a tuna sandwich and savoring a bowl of hot tomato soup.  Before he takes his first bite of the sandwich, he augments it with a generous helping of low-fat mayonnaise. Other men –and a few women, come and go at the communal table; but he stays put. He likes to linger on as long as possible and socialize with his friends.   Together, they help themselves to a pot of coffee that never seems to run dry.

Meanwhile, in the front room, a small group of men are gathered around one of the room's huge imitation-leather couches.   Like a handful of iron filings drawn irresistibly to a powerful magnet, they have been drawn to a large plastic bin perched atop the couch.  It is filled to overflowing with new clothes.  Grace House makes donated clothes available to its guests every Monday afternoon. "These clothes are the SHIT!" happily exclaims one of the men. Fresh from the shelters' front porch, he has just finished smoking a roll-your-own cigarette.   Some of the smoke has accompanied him back inside the building. Today he's wearing camouflage army pants and a rumpled grey sweatshirt. 

He elbows his way –politely and good naturedly, into the circle of people going through the contents of the plastic bin. "Did you know that a lot of this stuff originally comes from college students at UC Davis?   Yeah, it does. Some of those guys throw away some really nice clothes!  You couldn't even get a hold of some of this stuff, anywhere else! 

As the hours wear on, -and on, contentment pervades the rooms of Grace House.   People have food in their bellies.  They have found a few items of new clothes to call their own. They have had a couple of cups of coffee, and perhaps shared a cigarette with old friends.  They have made it through one more day in The Neighborhood.  They are happy in the knowledge that come next Monday afternoon, they will get together at Grace House and do it all over again.

They also, have Faith.

 

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Please note: Grace in Action receives no city or government grant support at this time. We are in need of funding to continue our works of mercy. Your individual prayers, donations and volunteer support are greatly appreciated. We especially need volunteers from 12-2 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 3-4:30 on Mondays.

Our new phone number as of August 1st will be (530) 792-1053. Please make a note of it. Our address is the same POB 4393 Davis, CA 95617. Your contributions are tax deductible.

Please see the "Special Events" section on the "How Can I Help Link" on our website at www.Grace-in-Action.org for more information about our fall fundraiser. Save the date! October 14, 2006.

Thank you for your ongoing support.

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