A City of Compassion

Many of you are aware of the homeless battle going on in my community.  Since the common council voted down the proposal we brought before them, many things have happened.

You see this began a year ago with a phone call from my mother about a news story in the Milwaukee area.  I saw the idea as a way for our community to help others and proposed it to our senior pastor.  His one comment was, “I’d rather be a community of compassion than a church of compassion.”  And so I went to the city for their approval.

Success is measured many ways by many people.  After our six week plan was completed, we felt success.  And I thought we were done.  Our local homeless organization would probably have a permanent place by next winter, and we’d done what we felt we were “called” to do.

As time passed, we realized that there would be no solution for this winter.  My local church board approved my job to be that of organizing something for this winter in the community, provided the mayor was on board…they wanted “the king’s favor.”  We got it, found out the process, and started working on a plan.

After losing the request we’d submitted, I thought I was done.  Yet, I told my senior pastor that I knew it wasn’t done…didn’t know any more than that…but it wasn’t done.  Then the comments to the newspaper started coming in.  The anger and hatred that were hurled on line were unsettling.  Phone calls and emails to me became intimidating.  I was so done with this and had moved on…but I knew it wasn’t done.  I wanted it over with, but the comments kept being made.

Then an editorial and then another article.  Letters to the editor started, and more comments.  Then I started getting phone calls and emails from people with solutions to the problem.  A businessman willing to give us space for the cost of heat…churches asking if we couldn’t use their location…an idea for an already empty building as a permanent shelter. 

Again I went to the mayor and said that we might be able to solve the problem, but she would need to cut through the red tape of city hall, because the red tape meant that we couldn’t make anything happen until February.  That’s where we’re at today…waiting on the city staff to figure out a way to make one of these offers work in a timely manner.

But the biggest thing that happened through all of this is that we’ve learned that our community is one of compassion.  Most of the voices speaking out about the subject have been in favor of the project.  Many have said, “You can move into my backyard.”  Donations have started to come in.  Awareness has been created.  And I believe the words will become actions.  As I said to the council members who voted ‘yes,’ “any time a community is moved to act in justice for those less fortunate, it speaks volumes about that community.”  I believe Wisconsin Rapids is a community of compassion.