By Kevin Peterson, Director of Missions, Eastridge Covenant Church
Have you noticed the homeless issue in Portland and other cities? It seems to be everywhere. What can be done? More to the point how do you get your church/youth group to engage in a practical way with the homeless? Eastridge Church, in Happy Valley, found a simple way to do just that. They partnered with Fruitful Spirit, a non-profit started by a couple of men from local Covenant churches. It is really quite interesting and inexpensive with real impact.
Fruitful Spirit came to Eastridge to demonstrate and then build several blankets that are suited for life outside. They are able to reflect or hold in heat, strong, water repellent, flame retardant and inexpensive (<$10) to make. They can be used as a blanket, a tarp, a tent or even to make a sleeping bag. One of the Eastridge lifegroups hosted the event in our sanctuary with food and people ready to go. Charlie Crawford set up several work stations and demonstrated the the process. Lay down a “space blanket” layer (make sure the shiny side is down), lay out a thin layer of flame retardant insulating material, a roller (PVC pipe) and then start applying spray on adhesive in sections. The insulating material is then pressed into place section by section with the roller and many gloved hands. Once in place the edge is then given a folded over layer of tape that seals the whole thing. Finally the group signed the backside with messages for the new owner. They took about 45minutes to make but everyone was confident they could do the next ones even faster. There was even an outdoor demonstration to lay on a sidewalk in one to see how warm they really are (they are quite warm).
Later, our youth leaders asked if our students could make blankets. So, Charlie and his sidekick took everything out to Trout Creek Bible camp and helped the middle and high school students make over a dozen blankets during their Spring Retreat. It was a real kick watching the various ages, sizes and skill levels focusing on making the blankets as a team and then thinking of something meaningful to write on the back for those that will use them.
Finished blankets are distributed by the Union Gospel Mission through their “search and rescue” teams. Fruitful Spirit also has a program of helping the “campers” around the city to clean up trash by regularly running routes, building relationships with campers, land owners and local agencies. There are many more ways to get involved in alleviating some of immediate/physical needs while the big issues are being debated
[Click Here] to visit the Fruitful Spirit Website where you can learn how to connect with and get involved in this simple, immediate and loving outreach.
