|
Rockin' the neighborhood with good deeds
Drive through Brooklyn Park and Brooklyn Center on a Wednesday night and you may see an army of volunteers wearing bright yellow t-shirts.
They could be picking up trash along Brooklyn Boulevard, washing cars beside the Rainbow Foods, or handing out free bottles of water at a baseball game. Some even drove into Brooklyn Center to help an older woman pick up limbs out of her yard.
It's an effort called "Operation Outreach" put on by Living Word Christian Center in Brooklyn Park.
"We show them that God cares about them and the church is here," said Laura Wegener, who works at LWCC. "We do anything from helping a community to helping an individual person."
The church picks one Wednesday night per month during the summer to organize activities. It publicizes the event to its members so on the designated night people turn up wearing their bright yellow shirts that say "Operation Outreach" on the front and "Rock the Neighborhood" on the back.
It's the seventh year for the project that attracts people to church in what is traditionally the slowest time of the year for churches.
The crowd catches your attention when they are all gathered together. After arriving at the church campus, the faithful participate in a brief worship service. Then, they migrate to the fellowship hall to sign up for their volunteer activity.
July's events included street evangelism, bagging groceries, picking up the boulevard, washing car windshields, handing out bottles of water, washing cars and doing yard work for the elderly. The idea is to get the group in, give them a job and then send them out to work.
"They are a fantastic group and they really have a great heart for helping people," said Ellen Niznik of Brooklyn Center.
A team came to Niznik's house to haul branches, trim trees, clean out brush and cut the grass.
"This wouldn't have gotten done if it wasn't for them," said Niznik.
Deb Hartmann is one of the volunteers picking up branches in Niznik's yard.
"We get out in the community and show the love," said Hartmann, who says she feels joy after helping others at events like this.
Hartmann has participated in Operation Outreach for several years, but younger volunteers are helping too.
Kacey Ayers and Rachel Quimby are junior high students assigned to a car wash beside Rainbow Foods.
"We feel like we helped people and made a difference," said Ayers and Quimby. "[The people] are surprised and shocked that we actually give them a dollar instead of them giving us one."
A group of kids stand outside at the road with signs that read "Car Wash $1." After the kids wash the car, an adult hands the driver $1 and says "since God has blessed us, we are giving you a dollar this time."
Drivers drove away a bit baffled, but smiling. "They are good people," said one driver.
Shannon Slatton, reporting
sslatton@twelve.tv
July 16, 2009
| |