I RODE THE well-used elevator down one floor to the basement of Lord of the Streets Episcopal Church in midtown Houston, accompanied by several people who had slept in a park the night before. We smelled the coffee as soon as the doors opened and, after filling Styrofoam cups, walked down the hall to Bible study together.
More than 40 people sat in the irregular circle of folding chairs, listening intently and respectfully to a woman of indeterminate age with braided hair and weathered skin. Her stuffed backpack was shoved beneath her seat, and she wore several T-shirts and a collared shirt beneath a dingy camouflage jacket. The man to her immediate right hugged a very worn stuffed bear to his chest. “When I look at my life,” she said, “I know I’ve failed me. God has not failed me.”
Lord of the Streets vicar, the Rev. Martha Frances, joins others in nodding. She tells the group about her “call” from God to the priesthood. She explains that her faith community supported and affirmed that call. “They kept me on the road,” she says. “That’s why we need each other, that’s why we need Bible study.” Nods all around again.
The LOTS mission is to minister to the spiritual, emotional, physical and social needs of individuals in transition, many of whom are homeless. Begun as a ministry of Trinity Church, Houston, in 1993, LOTS provided direct assistance to more than 12,467 persons in 2003, welcoming more than half of those to Bible Studies, Sunday school, baptism and confirmation classes. LOTS is a Jubilee Ministry, a designation given by the Episcopal Church to a congregation or agency with connections to the Episcopal Church that is engaged in mission and ministry among and with poor and oppressed people.
A community filled with caring
It is very clear that the men and women who come to LOTS have found community, a deeper spirituality and a profound dignity with one another.
It is also clear that Frances has found her calling. Social justice and working for the poor are a way of life for Frances. The daughter of a Methodist minister who “helped integrate every ministry he ever had,” Frances always has chosen to work with those on the margin.
“I taught in minority schools for 25 years,” she says, adding, “I’ve had personal experience with 12-step recovery for 30 years.”
Her empathy and ability to function effectively as executive director of LOTS and its outreach arm COTS (Community of the Streets) comes from first-hand knowledge that the church “has not always welcomed me and my kind.”
The most important thing about LOTS, Frances says, is the energy and spirit of the people. “There is a vibrant sense of community here.”
Community and belonging are things many homeless people never have experienced.
Chester, a chronically homeless man, has 17 brothers and sisters, all of whom were removed from their parents care to grow up in a variety of settings. All have suffered with drug or mental problems or issues of violence.
“Chester has been on the streets for a long time,” Frances says, adding that he was the first member of the LOTS altar guild and an active member in the mission’s chapter of the Brotherhood of St. Andrews. For the first time in his life, Chester is a leader within a community.
The sense of community is enhanced by ministries such as the brotherhood, “a ministry for the spread of Christ’s Kingdom among men and youth in the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion,” according to the group’s national website, [www.brotherhoodstandrew.org]. More than 30 members of LOTS recently were installed into the national association of the Brotherhood of St. Andrews, which helps provide male mentors and a model for developing spiritual lives, supporting the sense of community even further.
After Bible study is over, most of the group moves upstairs to meet with counselors, use the phones or check mail. LOTS provides these services so people can look for jobs and have a callback number.
At the door to the elevator, Chester remembers to get his flu shot and turns to head into a health clinic located across the hall. The clinic is open three days a week to provide non-emergency health care. For homeless people with no insurance, the services are free.
One day a week, the clinic welcomes women and children exclusively. Clinic supervisors are available to listen to the needs of the patients. “The women here knew what they needed,” Frances says, explaining how empowering the women say it was to have their voice heard by clinic supervisors. “A mom with three kids who has left her husband or boyfriend has no resources to get back on her feet. Many of them are abused, and this is a comfortable place for them, not loud or crowded.”
LOTS help reclaim identities
A great problem the homeless population faces is anonymity. “People who come to LOTS come with a tangled web of needs that begin with the basics of food, clothing and shelter,” Frances says. Without three pieces of identification, any number of social services are inaccessible. Many people have nothing that tells the person across the counter who they are. “Imagine not having proof that you exist.”
As a result, one of the most important ministries at LOTS is helping to provide ID cards that allow people to gain admission to emergency shelter, receive health care, enroll their children in health-care services and school and more.
Jerry Jares is a counselor at LOTS who helps with the ID card program. “Everyone who works and volunteers here shares a deep commitment to making our people feel welcome,” Jares says.
One man Jares was counseling was “seeking answers to the horrific things that happened to him,” she says. “He is still wondering why these things happened. What he is going through is normal. There are a lot of ‘Aha!’ moments because they trust me and are open enough with me to share where they are on their journey.”
Some of the people who come to LOTS are capable of making progress, and some will never be able to manage on their own, Frances says. “People need to understand that we provide long-term commitment for some and short-term help for many others.”
