I live in a metropolis. I don't know what it's like where you live, but we have a considerable population of homeless. They are on the corners of most busy intersections with their signs and ragged clothes and vacant faces.
I also have children. With compassionate hearts. I have one, too, but it has been hardened by years of overexposure to ... well, too much. It is still compassionate, but with a thick, cynical shell.
These things together make for a difficult situation as we make our way around town. A couple of years ago I came up with a solution: our homeless bags.
Here is what we fill our bags with:
- a water bottle
- water flavoring
- crackers
- cookies
I usually buy a 6-pack of water. Then I buy a box of the flavorings. Since they come in boxes of 12, we put two in each bag. I buy a box of crackers and we divide them among the bags. They usually come in 8's, so some bags get one and some get two. I also add some kind of cookie. This time I got some Little Debbie's. I have also gotten animal crackers. Everything is individually wrapped and non-perishable. Some of the other things we have added at different times are:
- candy canes at Christmas
- toothbrushes (you can get a pack for $1 at the dollar store)
- toothpaste
- little cans of fruit (make sure you add a spoon)
- napkins
- bandaids
I have never failed to get a smile from someone who has received a bag. And that can even crack my cynical shell just a little.
"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10
7 comments:
Julie,
You humble me sometimes. This is a wonderful idea. I wonder if someone has an idea how some protein might be added to this packet inexpensively.
Lee
We have also added Vienna sausages. They really gross me out though, so I don't add them often. There is some protein, however minimal in the cheese or peanut butter in the crackers.
That's very nice of ya'll to do that.
That's a lovely idea. I wish more people would do things like this instead of ignoring the homeless and looking at them like they are a bug.
I work in a metropolis too, this is a truly genious idea. I hate giving out money sometimes cause you can tell its just going to feed a habit. An idea like this feeds a person. As to the comment about proteins, I bet beef jerky could do the trick. Far less icky than the vienna sausages.
Wow-what a wonderful thoughtful thing to do!
What a wonderful idea. I had a friend who used to go downtown and hand out happy meals to the homeless kids every payday.
I guess we are fortunate to live in an area without many "visible" homeless but I certainly think I could make these up and drop them at a women's shelter. Thanks for the idea
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