Category: Programming

This week’s beautiful poem was written by the very talented Miguel!

When life has knocked you off your feet…
No job in sight, no food to eat.
Our father knows of all these things,
And blesses us with angels’ wings.

He shelters us from storms that blow,
And cleans us up and gives us clothes.
He feels our pain, and gives us dreams
And tempers both with angels’ wings.

He’ll guide you to this world of peace,
Where welcomed souls can rest their feet.
It’s in the songs that all birds sing,
GMC / angels’ wings.

Last Tuesday, ER Nurse Jessica Cook came to the Center and gave a presentation on foot care and trench foot, a disorder not uncommon to homeless people.  She stressed the importance of letting one’s feet breathe and changing into dry socks after spending time in the elements. Afterwards, Jessica check blood pressure and glucose levels for those who wanted the service. Jessica plans on coming back often to provide health talks and basic health screenings.

Last Wednesday, MPD officers Antonial Atkins and Roberto Corchado came to talk about personal safety, public awareness, and working together with all segments of the community to reduce street crimes.

At Georgetown Ministry Center, we talk about community a lot. There’s the community and camaraderie in the center, and there’s our relationship with the Georgetown community, which varies from love and support to frustration and resentment. We do our best to strengthen our community by bridging gaps of understanding and communication, whether we are attending Block by Block meet and greets or inviting members of the community into our center to meet our awesome guests.

At this week’s house meeting, Officer Atkins from the Metropolitan Police Department came in to meet and speak with our guests. It was our most well-attended house meeting to date; even those who usually don’t participate in our weekly house meetings came into the room to hear what Officer Atkins had to say.

In addition to encouraging our guests to introduce themselves to his fellow officers, Officer Atkins had his captive audience discuss panhandling laws and define “agressive panhandling” to each other. He also pushed our guests not to leave their bags unattended, as it uses a lot of time and resources when authorities have to examine suspicious bags. Some of our guests had no idea that the FBI, canine unit, and bomb squad all respond to calls in which their bag might be the focus.

Above all of his talking points, Officer Atkins stressed that we, whether we have a house or not, are all part of the same community, and that this community is only as strong and cohesive as we choose to make it. He urged everyone report suspicious activity, understand where others are coming from, and to reach out to those in need.

On Wednesday, June 20, GMC welcomed Kalli Simon as the leader of our new Fitness Group! Kalli’s high energy and enthusiasm is so infectious. On the first day, the mood our participants quickly changed from hesitant and reluctant to excited and joyful. The next week, one of the participants from the week before came to GMC just to participate in the group!

Not only is Kalli a superstar workout leader, but she also took the initiative and contacted Whole Foods to see if they would donate some reusable water bottles for participating members. Whole Foods agreed and was very supportive! Thank you, Whole Foods, and thank you to Kalli for reaching out to them!

Read on to learn more about Kalli, why she wanted to come and volunteer at GMC, and how to get in contact with her!

Read more…

Every Tuesday at 12:30pm, staff and members of Georgetown Ministry Center gather together for our weekly House Meeting. These meetings are an open forum for anybody to raise concerns, questions, suggestions, and observations. Sometimes we discuss small additions to the center, such as acquiring a drain board for under our coffee maker. Other times, we have weighed serious matters, such as the behavior of certain individuals and how to properly acknowledge it.

During today’s House Meeting staff covered subjects including the Veterans Affairs Homeless Outreach Program, Medicare, and Medicaid. But, the meat of this House Meeting comes from the questions and concerns from our members. One of our members, who is deaf, let us know that one of his homeless deaf friends was accosted by Park Police for sleeping in a park, and that because the individual was deaf, could not understand or communicate with Park Police, which escalated the situation.

Others chimed in about the lack of Park Police’s sensitivity training, how they, too, have been treated unjustly by police. And so, at next week’s meeting, we will be covering how to deal with such a situation, assert one’s rights, and file a police report.

It was a calm, thoughtful, and informative meeting for staff and guests alike. If you have any input for next week’s meeting, please feel free to email or call us (or come by next Tuesday at 12:30pm)! We’d love to hear from you.