Spring '13 Newsletter Community In January, we lost two good friends. One was a volunteer, the other a client. The volunteer had an extended family, some of whom we were privileged to meet during the funeral, former work colleagues and friends. During his illness, he had a lot of love and support. Several times during his treatments, he dropped by to greet his new friends here and to let us know how he was doing. The client suffered a severe stroke at the age of 54. The hospital contacted his known next of kin, who informed them he wanted nothing to do with the situation. So, the hospital team decided when they should discontinue life support, and our friend passed away alone shortly thereafter. All that happened before word had reached us of his illness. We contacted the hospital social worker, who was responsible for putting the pieces together for a citypaid burial and made it clear that our friend was important to us and the people here and that we wanted to be present at the grave-side. We contacted the funeral home that would be involved and asked them to please keep us informed. When several days passed without any information, we checked and discovered that the body had been released on a Friday afternoon and had been taken straight to the cemetery. The funeral home said they had misplaced our contact information. So, our friend died alone and was buried alone, although both the Hospitality Centre across the street and we held memorials for him. Soon we discovered that our client was helping an elderly gentleman who lives just a few doors from the Ark. This man was essentially bed-ridden. His toilet was plugged, the place was filthy and he was very frail. So, the Hospitality Centre and the Ark started taking him food. Some of our volunteers cleaned up his apartment and unplugged the toilet. In a couple of days, he was out of bed and devouring every morsel of food we took him. Last week, on his way to the bank with his walker, he dropped in to thank us. As you may imagine, he wanted to know why we would be doing all this for him when we didn't even know him. Of course, the answer is that God loves him and so he matters to us. The stories of these 3 men illustrate an important point about poverty: one factor is lack of relationships. A poor home life in the early years can result in life-long trouble. A failed marriage can quickly erode years of productivity and saving. An illness without supportive family can bring almost instant poverty. Addiction and mental health issues are sure to test the patience of any family. Unemployment and the resulting loss of relationships sometimes means the loss of self-esteem, the loss of relationship with self. Loneliness is perhaps one of life's worst afflictions and being alone is even worse. On Christmas Day, we served a meal with the help of Bethel Reformed Church. When Kim, our Arkware coordinator and I dropped in, we heard the words, “Our family is here.” When you understand how few relationships some people have, those words are sacred. Some folks call the Ark a 'safe haven' and you can see that on the video posted on our website. At the very least, it is a community centre, where people can come, meet friends and be themselves. That is why you will sometimes see a lineup outside. It is not to be sure of getting food – there always is food. It is because this is where Kim with Christmas gift bags friends are. Volunteers say the same thing. As we live and work together and serve each other we find that we are all growing in relationships, including with God and that enriches us all. Food is a great basis for fellowship but the Ark is much more than a meal. We are building community in ways that perhaps many 'prosperous' people don't have. So, who is poor? The Ark Aid Street Mission, Inc
696 Dundas Street E., London, Ontario N5W 2Z4 Tel. 519-667-0322 Fax: 226-289-3045 E-mail: info@arkaidmission.com Web: www.arkaidmission.com
Fund-raising Thanks to the London Potters Guild for Empty Bowls, a fund-raising event for the Ark on March 1. It was a great success. More than 15 restaurants donated soup and bread and the Goodwill Centre donated their wonderful space. The final total is not yet available but it will be over $6000. This is a great example of neighbours helping neighbours – the Guild is located just a few doors from the Ark and many of our clients live nearby. Pictured, the mayor supported the event by making some bowls. Thanks to everyone who supported the event! The next fund-raising event for the Ark will be the 2nd Annual Walk for Hearing, Sat. May 25, organized by Beck Hearing Aid Centre as part of Hearing Month. This is a 5 km walk that swings by the Ark for refreshments and a tour. Contact the Ark office or Beck Hearing 519-438-0492 to sign up to walk or to sponsor someone. Working together A big 'Thank You' to Angelo's Bakery, London City Chrysler, New Hope Church, UWO students and others who did coat drives this winter. Angelo's alone collected 260 coats – and we needed them all! We are also pleased to announce some new partnerships to provide more services without raising our costs. Thursday evenings there is a Healing Room here from Impact Church for anyone desiring prayer. They join Teen Challenge who come once a month to share a testimony and Harvest Bible Chapel which sends a women's ministry team monthly. We are also very pleased to have the London Centre of Hope Family Health Team here on Tuesday afternoons as an outreach clinic. This is on a trial basis but it is one that could be of great benefit to our clients and neighbours.
A dept. of Compassion Canada collected funds, bought supplies & made up the Christmas gift bags
A farmer butchered a cow & donated all 682 lbs of beef
4 Swiss Chalet stores donated 2 nights of meals in Dec.
Projects Every year it is good to improve the building or renew some infrastructure. The Ark has now been in its present location about 12 years, so some of what was once new needs updating now. This month we poured a new floor in the basement under the office. This used to have a direct entrance to Dundas St, and the small rooms there were used for drugs and prostitution. We tore all those rooms out and will use the space for storage of food, craft supplies, Christmas decorations, etc. We are talking about a walk-in freezer – we'll let you know! We also are updating the security system including installing cameras. The 3 front doors all fit poorly and need replacing. Several large front windows have lost their thermal seal, so they will be replaced. Total cost for these renovations is approximately $12,000. Your turn Thanks for the support the Ark received last year and thus far in 2013. With a couple of generous gifts and a couple of bequests, the Board retired the mortgage, some 14 years early, in January. We are excited and happy about that! But costs keep rising, as do the number of clients and the meals served. So, we need your support again this year and will be very grateful for it. There is so much more to be done to care for vulnerable people. With the debt behind us, we look forward to being even more effective in embracing the hungry and suffering with the love of Christ. In community. Doug Whitelaw Executive Director Twitter: @ArkAidMission
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