Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, NC

Late November is a frantic time of year, but when Vivian asked me to write about the Inter-Faith Council for the next Cross Roads, I jumped at the chance! Because of the renovation of the men's shelter last summer, the agency has had a lot of publicity. The Chapel of the Cross was one of 13 community groups, mostly churches, that agreed to help host the homeless. The project was well-planned and executed. We found our overnight guests to be well behaved, intelligent, and grateful. It was an eye-opener for several parishioners who have since become regular volunteers at the reopened shelter.

The IFC offers services at three sites. Community House, at the corner of Rosemary and Columbia Streets, is a place where homeless men sleep and anyone can eat three delicious, nutritious meals 365 days a year. (Chapel of the Cross teams prepare and serve meals there twice a month.) Women and children are housed at Homestart, on Homestead Road, just beyond Human Services (i.e., the Welfare Office.) On Mondays I work at the office site on Main Street in Carrboro (across from Club Nova.) I interview people who need food (available to clients once a month), clothing (we give PTA Thrift Shop vouchers), and money for rent and utilities. Applicants are carefully screened, records are kept, and confidentiality is maintained. I'm particularly impressed with my supervisor's insistence that each client's dignity be maintained at all times. People in need are made to feel welcome to return and are assisted by means of case management. We don't just help people "over the hump," we make available other resources so they may become financially independent. This may involve improved health, sobriety, vocational training, etc., all of which inevitably enhance a client's self confidence.

For years, the Chapel of the Cross has had parishioners on the IFC Board and numerous volunteers who serve in various ways. If kitchen duties or contact with people in need isn't your thing, you could be invaluable picking up day-old bread from Harris Teeter.

For the past two years, our Social Ministry Committee has sponsored the hugely successful "Project 5000:" nearly 600 boxes with non-perishable food (enough to feed a family of four for two days.) This largess clogged the Main Street office periodically in November and demonstrated a commitment by the Chapel of the Cross: given the opportunity, our parishioners respond in spades! Under the leadership of our rector, the vestry, and the Social Ministry Committee, we've come to realize that, "We are stewards, not consumers or owners, of all that God gives us." [Stephen Elkins-Williams, October 2004 , Cross Roads.]

And you know what? It's IFC that makes much of this outreach possible . . . and easy!

Send items for inclusion in future "Cross Roads."
The deadline is the first Thursday of the preceeding month.