Portland churches reach out in variety of ways to needy
11/24/2003 News media contact: Tim Tanton · (615) 742-5470 · Nashville, Tenn.
NOTE: Photos are available. For related coverage, see UMNS stories #568-570.
By Tim Tanton
Pat
Schwiebert gives haircuts after each Wednesday night dinner at
Sunnyside United Methodist Church in Portland, Ore. She has coordinated
the feeding program for 22 years. A UMNS photo by Tim Tanton. Photo
number 03-485, Accompanies UMNS #567, 11/24/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
"If
we’ve made a statement that all people are welcome to worship here, we
need to live into that statement," says the Rev. Brenda Sene, associate
pastor of First United Methodist Church of Portland, Ore. A UMNS photo
by Tim Tanton. Photo number 03-482, Accompanies UMNS #567, 11/24/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
Pat
Schwiebert (left) visits with Johanna Studer during the free Wednesday
night dinner at Sunnyside United Methodist Church in Portland, Ore. A
regular at the dinner, Studer says she likes having the chance to talk
to other people. Schwiebert has coordinated the program for 22 years. A
UMNS photo by Tim Tanton. Photo number 03-484, Accompanies UMNS #567,
11/24/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
A UMNS file photo by Tim Tanton
Churches such as Sunnyside United Methodist in Portland, Ore., respond to poverty with feeding programs.
The
Wednesday night feeding program at Sunnyside United Methodist Church in
Portland, Ore., draws 100 to 120 people. A UMNS photo by Tim Tanton.
Photo number 03-483, Accompanies UMNS #567, 11/24/03
James
Vanderveer breaks down cans for recycling at a Wednesday night dinner
for the needy. Vanderveer, a member of Metropolitan Community Church in
Portland, Ore., is one of many people from local congregations who help
in the program, held at a United Methodist church. A UMNS photo by Tim
Tanton. Photo number 03-486, Accompanies UMNS #567, 11/24/03
No Long Caption Available for this Story
PORTLAND, Ore. (UMNS) - The Rev. Brenda Sene
recalls the first time she and her daughter worked in the homeless
shelter at First United Methodist Church.
Her daughter, 9 years old at the time, was surprised at the people she met. "Mom," she said, "those kids, they're just like me."
Sene,
associate pastor at the church, emphasizes that anyone can become
impoverished or even homeless. Fellow church members who seem affluent
can be on the verge of destitution.
"We have people who are on
the edge," Sene says. Many of them are former high-tech workers who have
been jobless for more than a year. They still have homes but are
struggling to get by.
As in most U.S. cities, the church
community actively ministers to those in need as well as to the
homeless. United Methodist churches host feeding programs, offer
shelter, and provide other assistance.
The poor are quiet, says
Tani Draper, lay leader at Vermont Hills United Methodist Church. "It's
amazing that all of this (poverty) is right here in our community, and
until you start to ask, you just really don't know what the needs are."
"They
have no advocates other than us," adds the Rev. Chuck Cooper, Vermont
Hills pastor. "They have no political clout whatsoever."
Vermont
Hills members adopted a nearby elementary school with a high percentage
of children living at or below the poverty line. The church also
provided a helping hand to a family that had struggled with poverty and
health problems. Church Youth Director Jenna McDorman led her young
people in helping clean the family's home as a service project, and the
mother expressed her thanks afterward.
But, says McDorman, "I don't think she felt nearly as good as the rest of us felt."
First
Church, on the edge of downtown Portland, hosts an ecumenical shelter
Nov. 1-May 1, where homeless families receive a meal each night.
Volunteers give the parents a break by working with the children on
homework, games, arts and crafts.
"We've been very careful not
to tie coming to church with the shelter," Sene says. Some homeless
people do attend services and even participate in Sunday school.
Young
people from First Church have handed out sandwiches to homeless people
downtown. For about 20 families in less-obvious need, the congregation
has bought gift certificates to help with financial stresses around
Thanksgiving. Counseling services also are provided through the church.
Across
town, at Sunnyside United Methodist Church, 100 or more needy people
gather each Wednesday for dinner, served by members from a variety of
Christian traditions. Pat Schwiebert, with Metanoia Peace Community
United Methodist Church, has coordinated the program for 22 years and
offers haircuts after each meal.
"It's very important to the
community that they have a place people can come to for a free meal,"
says Kevin Ervin, a guest at one of the recent dinners. Though he has a
home, he says he knows what it's like to be homeless, and many of his
buddies with roofs over their heads simply don't have enough money for
food.
Some people, like Johanna Studer, are there as much for the
company as the food. Studer, 92, is the only surviving member of her
family. "You talk to people, and you don't get lonely," she explains.
Barry
Sutton has been living in a shelter after being homeless for 20 years.
He gets around town by bike, spends time at a Buddhist temple as well as
a United Methodist church, and always carries a copy of the U.S.
Constitution. Though he might appear to be on the margins of society, he
is more plugged in to current events than many, and he has strong
feelings about religion and justice.
"What is really important," he says, "is what religious faith can do for the society around us." # # # *Tanton is United Methodist News Service's managing editor.