By Mo Scarpelli

At the Christian Community Center in West Baltimore, a familiar chorus is heard every day across the playground area: “Mr. Tom! Mr. Tom!”

More than 50 kids show up at the community center at any one time, where they take Bible classes, play on the jungle gym, and this past summer, spent time with senior high Experience Mission volunteers.

“This is the best summer I’ve ever had here,” said Tom Homans, director of the Christian Community Center on Hollins Street. “Experience Mission has been such a blessing. The kids especially love the one-on-one time.”

One-on-one time is something Homans, or “Mr. Tom,” has had trouble giving all the children that attend the Community Center since he stepped into the full-time position almost exactly five years ago.

And although the kids in West Baltimore have a laundry list of needs, Homans says their need for meaningful relationships should be at the top of the list, even if it’s somewhat new to them.

“You can tell from some of the kids, the way they act, they just need attention,” said Homans. “They need someone to come in and hang out and listen to them. ”

This kind of ministry can be new to some volunteers, even if they’ve been on the mission-field for years.

TJ Speer of Peqauannoc, New Jersey spent a week in Arizona in 2006 and then another in Gary, WV in 2007, working under Experience Mission. He says he spent most of his time building and repairing homes.

This summer, Speer got to see a different side of mission work in Baltimore when he spent a day at the Christian Community Center.

“Just having the chance to interact with them on a more friendship basis than a service level has been really meaningful,” said 18-year-old Speer. “It’s very important for them because some have troubled backgrounds. They get to see that people care about them and they take on a positive uplifting spirit.”

Sleeping just around the block from the community center and passing by old row houses every day, Speer noticed that West Baltimore is not the safest place for a child.

Homans says drugs and alcohol are a constant temptation.

“The kids in the neighborhood are out 24/7,” said Homans. “Some of them have been through some rough stuff, they want to be happy, so they can’t say no to drugs or alcohol.”

Actually, that was Homans’ brothers’ story. Before Homans considered himself a Christian, he watched his brother become addicted to crack cocaine.

“I thought I’d get a call that he’s dead, even though he had a wife and kids,” said  Homans, thinking back to just six years ago. “I didn’t think he’d ever get clean.”

But to Homans’ surprise, he did. Furthermore, he found God in the process. And then he told Homans about his faith, and instilled a sense of conviction in his brother.

“My brother - he helped me know God’s power,” said Homans. “God got a hold of him and one night, he just started witnessing to me and I couldn’t stop thinking about it.”

Homans started pursuing his faith and volunteering with youth ministry at his church in “the County” (what Baltimoreans call the suburban area around the inner city). He heard about the Christian Community Center in Baltimore through his girlfriend and started stopping by to help out twice a week, when he wasn’t working.

“I felt called to work with kids and the church was a great place but my heart was really here,” said Homans, sweeping his hands to show his small office in the middle of the Community Center’s ground floor.

The Center first opened its doors in the fifties, in partnership with the Helping Up Mission, a drug rehabilitation center for men. In 1992, the Center became an independent institution, owned and operated by Betty and Charlie Horn, who still live in the area.

EM teams tour and help serve lunch at the Helping Up Mission, where volunteers get another shot at relational ministry - this time with adults trying to overcome their addictions with their faith.

The Helping Up Mission boasts a recovery rate of 67 percent - more than twice that of the average drug rehabilitation center. Mission employees attribute this to implementing faith in recovery.

Homans feels certain that faith helps everybody, no matter how hard the situation seems. After all, he was introduced to a living faith through his drug-addicted brother.

“If they don’t have the Lord, there’s not much you can do to help them,” said Homans of children and adults alike. “Around here, the temptation is so great to find pleasure that everyone needs the Lord.”

Experience Mission is facilitating mission trips to Honduras and Belize for Summer 2009. To learn more, visit <a href=”http://www.experiencemission.org”>ExperienceMission.org</a> or call the EM office at  360-732-0986

Not long ago, I had the opportunity to go to a homeless community in the heart of Baltimore.  I wouldn’t have expected it, but the park where the homeless gather is right next to the Metropolitan Police Station and lies on the property of St Vincent de Paul’s Catholic Church.  Initially I couldn’t figure out why they chose to stay in the place they were, but after spending some time with the people there, I realized that they had nowhere else to go.  In fact, they are still facing a forced move from the city and government officials.

As I talked with the men of the homeless park, I could see the hurt in their eyes and their desperation for food and water.  Although I was able to take a case of water with me, I still felt like there was so much more that needed to be done. I don’t know what that is in all honesty.  I’ve been thinking about what it looks like to help the poor and needy, but it’s a pandemic that is so much bigger than me.

The backgrounds of the people at the homeless park were so vast, I struggled to understand what their old lives were like.   Many of the men and women at the park left homes and families for one reason or another.  I knew there would be people who were evicted from their homes, caught up in drugs, and those who left for domestic disturbance reasons, but what was most shocking were the people who were so hopeless that they just simply didn’t care anymore.  They didn’t have motivation to live.  Perhaps the most tragic moment in a person’s life is that moment when purpose of living is lost—when the mountain of having true life in  Christ is so distant that life loses meaning.

I believe as we, as the Body of Christ, reach out this community and welcome them with loving arms, we can restore hope to a people who have none and share with them the true life of following Jesus.  I’m looking to go back soon and meet with these wonderful people again…very soon

For all of team Baltimore,

Blaine

I was impressed upon the other day to go explore the projects of the city and find the most broken and destitute parts of the low-income housing district and what I found was shocking and heartbreaking. Never in all of my life have I seen so many homes closed up and run down. At first glance, the row homes seemed nothing more than boarded up buildings with no occupation, but what hit me was the fact that these buildings were once homes of men and women, brothers and sisters, families and friends—these buildings held stories. It was clear from the faces of these buildings that there weren’t stories of joy, hope, and peace, but hurt, hopelessness, and desperation. With such a graphic depiction of brokenness in these homes, it begs the question of “Why?” What has forced so many people from their homes and turned once thriving neighborhoods into dilapidated streets of despair?

The vast majority of the homes in the city neighborhoods were once part of government issued housing projects which were built to support low income families. A handful of the original homes are still intact; which date back to the 30’s and earlier. As I talked to the people from these neighborhoods, I learned that many homes would be boarded up and destroyed because of tax evasion, drug activity, domestic disturbance, and murders. Whether from eviction, or domestic problems, the low-income district is marred with broken lives; some even forced into homelessness for having nowhere else to turn.

I guess what I’m finding hard to deal with is the fact I have never lived in a neighborhood like the one I visited that day. I have never had to experience what life of a low-income family was like. Until that day, I never would have been able to comprehend life in the projects. My heart goes out to this community. Having been in the inner city for over a month now, I am beginning to see how hard life really is for this part of Baltimore.

Even amongst the turmoil in city housing, there has been an increased effort and encouraging support from volunteers and organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, who are working to rebuild hope to the cities most rundown area. As God continues to work through people to bring His love and hope, lives will continue to be changed and a broken city restored.

Peace Out,

Blaine

Over the course of our week without teams, we have had the chance to see a lot more of the city as well as serve with our local community partners. It has been an experience of joy to be able to work with our partner ministries, but also an experience of sadness. The reason I say that is because it feels as though with each day we are here, we are seeing more and more need in a city that is so much bigger than any of us. Make no mistake, the ministry that God has placed before us is thriving and moving forward, but sometimes it feels like there just isn’t enough time to make right all of the injustices of such a big city.

I am humbly at peace with the fact that we don’t have enough time to right the wrongs of a broken city, but we do have the blessing of planting a seed for the years to come—that we could see God’s grace move in lives of the hurting and lost.

Something struck me quite hard the other day. That is, I don’t understand how people can be so oblivious to the needs of the homeless, widowed, and poor. How is it that there can be so much need and so little being done to fix things? I’ve tried so hard to put myself in the shoes of those around me, but it has been a failed effort. No matter what I do, I can’t truly understand the needs of the hurting unless I am where they are–unless God opens my eyes to see into their lives. My prayer is that God will continue to show me the heart of the hurting—to see into the life of a broken city.

The other day, as I was washing laundry at the laundromat, I was approached by a woman asking where I was from. As I began to tell her, she proceeded to admit that she already knew I wasn’t from around here. Assuming that it was because of my accent and the way I dressed, I was quickly surprised by what she would follow to say. She said, “I knew you weren’t from around here because most people don’t smile around this area.”

My heart sank at that moment. I began to see everywhere that what the woman had said was true—nobody smiles. Is it because there is so much hurt that joy is absent? Perhaps the abscess of joy in the lives of few have, in fact, impacted the unsuspecting lives of those who live their lives day in and day out passing by the lost and hurting.

Even in all of this, God is doing amazing things to change the life of Baltimore. There is an inescapable joy that exudes from the lives of God’s children. And as they move in this city and make the way for Jesus’ Love, the obstacles become more and more menial. Love breathes hope. Hope from God alone. Love still remains and we will continue to share that beautiful love with this city and see God’s hope restore the life of a broken city.

Peace Out and God Bless,

Blaine

The mission trips have started. Our first group of teams finally arrived in Baltimore and they are so excited for the week ahead. As we wrapped up orientation, Katherine, Kelly, and I really feel a sense of excitement from each one of the team members for the community and a passion for the people that they will serving.  As we approach our first day at the work sites, we’re beginning to see the incredible stories that the people of Baltimore have, and we couldn’t feel more blessed to be living life with and serving these people this summer.

One of the primary sites we have been working with is the Baltimore Christian Community Center.  The outreach of this place is absolutely incredible and it is moving to see the impact that it has on the local community. Tom Homans, the director of the center, welcomes kids from all over the inner city to the outreach to give them a place of joy and peace in a city that is so broken and poor. Right in the heart of the low-income district of the city, The Christian Community Center offers a place of refuge, fun, and spiritual encouragement to kids’ lives—many of whom have suffered more heartache than most people witness in their entire lives.

I was speaking with a young lady the other day that lost her brother to street violence a number of years ago. As she told me her story and began to share with me the hurt she has gone through with such an event, my heart broke. Even in all of the sadness however, there was something so beautiful about her story.  As she was talking to me about her brother, she shared how through such a devastating event, that she came to know Jesus and has given her life to Him. The joy that this young woman had was that of nothing I have ever seen—that even in heartache, something beautiful happened and changed her whole life. She has long been attending and still regularly attends the center to this day and will be going to Bob Jones University this fall. The impact of her story on me has been incredibly powerful ever since that day.

This is just one of the many beautiful stories that come from the people of the Christian Community Center and the city of Baltimore. Tom and the young lady that I spoke with are the true heroes of the community.  This summer isn’t about us as interns and what we can do as an organization, it’s not even about “doing missions;” this summer is about the people of the community—those who’s stories have yet to be told. We’re here to tell those stories as we work with teams from around the country.

For all of team Baltimore,

Blaine

Team Baltimore has finally arrived in beautiful Charm City (Baltimore that is).  It was quite a trip for all of us to make it out here.  Katherine drove all the way from Kansas and picked up Kelly in Ohio along the way.  I had some beautiful flights from Minneapolis to Atlanta and then a crazy delay from Atlanta to Baltimore.  Needless to say, it was a very interesting experience for all of us to get out here, but now that we have arrived, we couldn’t be happier. The summer mission trips are about to start.

For our first week, we are staying at a cabin of a friend of Experience Mission Executive Director Chris Clum.  The stay has been an experience in and of itself as the cabin is in the middle of the woods roughly 30 minutes outside of the downtown area.  Nevertheless, it has been a great retreat after all of our travels and work.

This week, we’ll be preparing for the teams to come next Sunday night–which we are extremely excited for.  The anticipation for the groups coming keeps building with every day.

Even with all the work that we have in front of us this next week, we aren’t worried or stressed about a thing; God has given us a great peace about everything to come.  Over the next few days we will be visiting the various ministry and outreach sites as well as hashing out all the detail work involved on the logistical side of things.  There is still so much to be done before the teams get here, but we have had a blast doing it.  Plus, we have had the blessing of having Sarah Tibbot, one of the lead Experience Mission staff members, fly out here with us and get our feet planted in Baltimore.  That has been huge for us as it has given us a lot of insight into the city, the ministries, and the people we’ll be spending a lot of interaction with. The next big step for us is to check out the sites we’ll be working at and later this week…grocery shopping.

Until next time, God bless!
 
Team Baltimore (Katherine, Kelly, and Blaine)

Training has just wrapped up for all of the ’08 Experience Mission Interns in Lawton, Michigan, and the teams are about to leave for their communities in the coming weeks.  Over May 24-28 we, along with about 30 other college students, made our way to Miracle Camp for a completely immersive training in the arts of first aid, wilderness training, and community training.  While there was little sleep, long treacherous days of learning in a classroom, and camp food involved in our excursion, everyone truly bonded over the 5 days and we’re all totally stoked to pour into peoples’ lives this summer.

With another new year brings about a new community for Experience Mission and we are proud to be a part of the new Baltimore community.  We (Blaine Brennecke, Katherine Lewis, and Kelly Chippindale) feel very blessed to be able to serve the mission trips and take part in being God’s hands and feet to the city of Baltimore.  Along with a new community comes new adventures, experiences, and joys and we are ecstatic to see what God is going to do through us as we take part in sharing His beautiful love with those in need.  Although there will be difficulties and moments that will stretch everyone, we are certain that lives are going to be changed as we reach out express the love of Christ with our lives.

This past week of training was exciting, tiring, and educational on so many different levels, but the greatest realization is that we have all come together from across the country (and Canada) to take part in something that is so much bigger than anyone of us.  It’s God’s amazing story unfolding around us and we couldn’t be happier to be a part of this chapter in history and share with you the powerful stories of the lives that are changed as we serve people who are involved in the mission trips!

There are bigger things in store for the community, us as interns, and the teams then I can comprehend, but I’m excited to share all of it with you as this summer unfolds.

For all of Team Baltimore, peace out!

- Blaine