This past week I have been working on a small side project for Elanco, an Indianapolis-based animal health company with a strong focus on ending global hunger.  For the project, I spent time interviewing several families and individuals connected with Shepherd Community Center, one of World Next Door’s partner ministries.

Each story I heard gave such a unique perspective on hunger, poverty and the incredible work of Shepherd that I had no choice but to share them here.

You’ll find the other stories here.  I encourage you to read them all.  Who knows?  Maybe they’ll change your perspective as much as they did mine…

———

Homelessness is a difficult issue to deal with.  It’s messy.  It’s complicated.  It’s hard.

I got a taste of just how complicated it is when I lived homeless for four days in Manhattan six months ago.  The frustration, the uncertainty, the shame… After only a few days on the streets I had a newfound understanding of what can come from living without a home.

That’s why I am always amazed to find homeless and formerly homeless people who exude strength, love and joy.  Frankly, they don’t make sense. 

Fredrick (“Freddy”) Crawford is no exception.  I sat down with him a few days ago at Shepherd Community Center to hear his story and I am still baffled at his uplifting and joyful attitude…

Welcoming a Stranger

I met with Freddy in Shepherd’s food pantry.  We sat in a couple of metal folding chairs while he told me where life has taken him up to this point.

Freddy, an amazingly joyful man.

One of the first things that struck me about Freddy was how intentional he was in simply being there.  I knew he had other things to do, but Freddy was with me 100% and never turned his attention away.  He answered my questions and told me his story in a way that simply made me feel respected.

As I spoke with Freddy, I was surprised at how quickly I felt at home.  His kind eyes and warm smile made me feel welcome, even though he had no idea who I was.

It would have been easy to write all of this off as the byproduct of speaking to a genuinely nice person.  But the more I heard Freddy’s story, the more amazed I grew that he is warm and kind at all.

Freddy has every right to be bitter.  Nobody would blame him for being cold.  After the things he’s gone through, it would come as no surprise if Freddy was a distant and angry man.

But he’s not. 

Freddy is loving.  He’s kind.  And, as you’ll see in a moment, unbelievably selfless.

His is a story of transformation that can only be found through the power of the kingdom of God…

The Spiral

Freddy, 46 years old, is originally from New York City.  At the age of 25, he found himself living on the streets.  I’ve written about homelessness in NYC before, so I won’t go into too many details about what it is like.

The streets of The Bronx, where Freddy lived for many years.

I’ll simply say that homelessness often becomes a downward spiral for people caught in the middle of it – a long series of events, decisions and circumstances that lead farther and farther into desperation.

Freddy’s life on the streets followed that pattern exactly.

Although he was able to move around from New York to Chicago to Indianapolis, his situation got steadily worse each year.  Freddy moved in and out of countless homeless shelters, but more often than not chose to sleep on the streets.  Discomfort, he decided, was far better than the theft, violence and rape that often took place in the shelters.

Depression and anxiety came to dominate his emotions.  Eventually, Freddy became hopelessly addicted to cocaine.

“It took me to places I wasn’t expecting to go,” he said. 

Altogether, Freddy was homeless for 20 years. 

A New Life

But then, in May of this year, Freddy finally decided to put his past behind him.  After spending a very cold winter sleeping under a highway overpass, he decided to give up his “freedom” for the sake of a better life. 

Homelessness often takes a deep emotional toll.

He got plugged in with Horizon House, a homeless empowerment organization on the near east side of Indianapolis.  They got him cleaned up, linked in with a case manager and connected to Shepherd Community Center.

Today, Freddy spends his days volunteering in Shepherd’s food pantry.  Horizon covers the rent for his small, one-bedroom apartment, and Shepherd provides him with food.

Although he doesn’t get paid for his work, Freddy often puts in more than 40 hours a week at Shepherd.  Sorting donations, doing intake work, interacting with volunteers…  Freddy is an integral part of the food pantry, and one of the reasons Shepherd is able to help so many people.

Freddy hopes to be hired one day by Shepherd, but not just because he wants to be financially self-sufficient.  Freddy loves Shepherd Community Center.  In his words, “This is my sanctuary.” 

Jumped

Listening to Freddy as he spoke, I could tell that he is a changed man.  He exudes joy and confidence.  Even after a lifetime of struggle, he has a smile on his face.

This came as even more of a surprise when I heard what had happened to him just one month ago.

Today, Freddy has purpose, a life and a caring community around him.

At the end of September, Freddy was jumped by a group of thugs as he walked down the street one evening.  Despite the fact that he didn’t have anything of value on him, they beat him up, breaking his jaw in the process.

Wishard Hospital did what they could to fix him up, but Freddy still suffers daily pain, especially when he tries to chew solid food.

And yet, he is still a remarkably joyful man.  He spends his days tirelessly sorting cans of corn and boxes of cereal, doing his part to help vulnerable families in his new neighborhood.

Transformed

Freddy’s story speaks volumes about the power of a transformed life.  But it also reminds me of the importance of organizations like Shepherd.  Their staff welcomed Freddy in, despite the difficulties of his past. 

To Shepherd, grace is more than simply a buzzword.  It’s the foundation of their ministry.  This is why they are so effective.  They care for those who have been forgotten and abandoned by the rest of us…

Thank you, Freddy, for showing me the true meaning of transformation.  And thank you, Shepherd, for opening your arms wide.

It is stories like these that show me just how powerful the kingdom of God can really be…

This past week I have been working on a small side project for Elanco, an Indianapolis-based animal health company with a strong focus on ending global hunger. For the project, I spent time interviewing several families and individuals connected with Shepherd Community Center, one of World Next Door’s partner ministries.

Each story I heard gave such a unique perspective on hunger, poverty and the incredible work of Shepherd that I had no choice but to share them here.

You’ll find the other stories here. I encourage you to read them all. Who knows? Maybe they’ll change your perspective as much as they did mine…

———-

 I’ve written about the plight of immigrants in American before (this article, for example).  Every year, thousands upon thousands of people flood into the U.S. looking to escape the poverty of their home countries.  They follow the dreams of a better life promised to them by American TV, movies and advertisements. 

But that dream quite often becomes a nightmare. 

Vast unemployment, deep poverty and a lack of healthcare lead many immigrant families to a day-by-day existence.  With a seemingly endless supply of cheap manual labor in our country, immigrant workers often live on the edge of a knife, knowing that even a single broken bone can lead to financial ruin.

The other day I met with one of these families.  Gabriela, whose name I changed for the sake of anonymity, sat down with me in her dilapidated old house to talk about what she goes through day by day.

Gabriela

Gabriela is not fluent in English.  As we spoke, she often drifted into Spanish, especially when she wanted to make an emphatic point.  Thankfully, I am able to understand a whole lot more Spanish than I can speak.  Somehow we made it work.

Gabriela’s house. An old and crumbling building.

Gabriela has six children from two marriages.  Her three oldest children are grown and currently live in Guadalajara, Mexico.  Her youngest three, still in elementary school, were born in the U.S. 

Her husband is a roofer.  For a while, this meant that he had a steady job.  Although the hours were long, the work was backbreaking and the pay was meager, her husband could make a living. 

Then the housing market collapsed.  Construction firms went bankrupt.  Suddenly, there were a lot of roofers looking for only a handful of jobs.

Today, he has a very hard time finding work.  And now, as winter approaches, Gabriela’s family must face a very uncertain future.

But a lack of work is not the only problem that comes along with winter…

The Luxury of Heat

When the weather gets cold outside, things become very difficult for Gabriela and her family.

Gabriela can’t afford much furniture. Most of the space in her house is empty.

After moving in to their current home, they quickly learned that heat in the winter was a luxury. They still use gas to heat their water and to cook, but keeping the gas on to heat their old, drafty house made their utility bills simply too expensive.

So, with no other option, they use small space heaters to stay warm.

Although it was only the beginning of autumn when I visited, I had to keep my jacket on inside.  I couldn’t imagine how cold it would get in the winter.

For My Kids

But despite the discomfort and hunger she herself faces, Gabriela has something much more important on her mind.  As we spoke, she told me over and over about her primary focus in life.  “I’m here for my kids.”

Like many immigrant parents, Gabriela has decided to forgo her own comfort, health and dreams of prosperity to ensure that her children have a chance to lift themselves out of poverty.

The near east side of Indianapolis is home to thousands of immigrant families eking out an existence on very little pay.

Because they are American citizens, her children are eligible for Medicaid and food stamps.  Gabriela, however, is not.

Whenever she gets her family’s monthly allotment of food stamps, Gabriela is able to feed her children well.  When I visited (at the beginning of the month), there was a nice chicken dinner simmering on the stove. 

But it is not always like that. When it gets to be the end of the month, and when the food stamps run out, Gabriela struggles to get food on the table.

Loving Community

Thankfully, Gabriela’s children don’t have to go hungry.  Right across the street from their home is Shepherd Community Center… a place of hope in a hopeless part of town.

Shepherd touches Gabriela’s family in a multitude of ways.  Her children have been able to develop a love of learning through Shepherd’s after-school program.  Her family has made it through the difficult months with food from Shepherd’s food pantry.  Each summer, her children get to enjoy Shepherd’s exciting summer camps.

On top of that, Shepherd Community Church is able to support Gabriela with a loving and supportive community.

“What would you do if Shepherd wasn’t here?” I asked.

She thought for a moment, then said, “I don’t know.  I don’t know what we would do without Shepherd…”

——-

Dinner on Gabriela’s stove. For now, at least, they have food on the table.

Gabriela’s story is not unique.  In fact, there are millions of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. who struggle with deep and cyclical poverty. 

That is why the work of Shepherd is so important.  Giving hope to hopeless people, giving a decent education to children at risk of illiteracy, caring for basic human needs such as hunger and medical care…

When I think about what Shepherd has done and will do for my city of Indianapolis, I can’t help but echo Gabriela’s sentiments exactly:

“I don’t know what we would do without Shepherd…”

This past week I have been working on a small side project for Elanco, an Indianapolis-based animal health company with a strong focus on ending global hunger.  For the project, I spent time interviewing several families and individuals connected with Shepherd Community Center, one of World Next Door’s partner ministries.

Each story I heard gave such a unique perspective on hunger, poverty and the incredible work of Shepherd that I had no choice but to share them here.

You’ll find the other stories here.  I encourage you to read them all.  Who knows?  Maybe they’ll change your perspective as much as they did mine…

———-

It’s humbling to think about how many different roads lead to hunger.  Homelessness, joblessness, the loss of a family member… It can happen in so many different ways.

In my suburban world, there are plenty of safety nets to keep me from worrying about going hungry.  I have money in my savings account, family and friends with food to spare and connections to land a part-time job if the need arises.

But for families in lower income communities, hunger can loom much larger on the horizon.

It often takes little more than an unfortunate series of events, a few bad decisions or an unexpected illness to change their financial situation entirely.  One day they have leftovers in the fridge.  The next day they wonder how they’ll get another meal on the table.

In my time with Shepherd, one of these stories stood out to me as particularly moving.  This is the story of Dawn.

Introductions

Dawn with Mikey on her lap.

It was noon on a bright fall day when I came to the apartment where Dawn was staying.  Kitty, Dawn’s mother, greeted me at the door.

“Come on in!” She said with a smile.

As I walked in, I was immediately hit by a wall of cigarette smoke.  Inside, Dawn and her three year old son, Mikey, were watching Dora the Explorer on the TV.

Kitty put out her cigarette.  “Can I get you something to drink?” she asked. “Some coke or something?”

“Yeah, a coke sounds great.” I replied.  “Thanks!”

While Kitty went into the kitchen, I introduced myself to Dawn, then turned to Mikey and said, “Mikey, how old are you?”

He held up four fingers, said “three,” then put one of his fingers back down after thinking about it for a second.  “I’m three.”  He laughed.

Kitty came back with the coke as I was explaining to Dawn why I was there.  After a bit of small talk, I asked if Dawn would be willing to share her story with me.  She agreed.

The Tables Turned

Dawn was 18 when she had her first child, Breanna.  Her second, Bianca, came along a year later.  Mikey, the youngest, was born three years after that.  Together with her husband Michel, they made a beautiful and thriving young family.

Dawn holding a photo of her family before Michele went away.

Today, however, Dawn is 25.  She’s unemployed.  Michel, her husband, is gone.  She struggles to feed her three children.  The tables have completely turned for Dawn and her kids.

So what happened?

Well, it’s not what you might think…

Michel didn’t abandon his wife.  He was deported.

Sent Away

According to Dawn, in October 2008 Michel “got in trouble” and was sent to federal prison.  She didn’t tell me why he was incarcerated, and I didn’t push to find out.

Whatever the case, after a year in a federal jail, Michel was sent to an immigration detention center.  Although he was here legally before his imprisonment, the immigration department decided to send him back to his home country, Peru.

When word came in April of this year that Michel was being sent back to Peru, Dawn did the only thing she could think to do.  She scraped together her savings, sold a few things and bought four tickets to Lima.  She and her three children would be waiting for Michel when he arrived.

Unfortunately, there were two major problems with this plan.

One, Dawn had never left the country before and didn’t speak much Spanish… a real problem since Michel’s family didn’t speak a word of English.

Two, the job situation in Lima was even worse than here in Indianapolis. Michel would have a very difficult time finding a steady job.

Mikey, who came back from 5 months in Peru almost fluent in Spanish!

Lima

Things unraveled pretty quickly for Dawn in Peru.  The first few weeks she spent with Michel’s family, waiting for Michel to arrive in a place where nobody understood a word she said.

“I cried a lot.”  She explained.

When Michel finally did arrive, he couldn’t find a job.  With no income, they couldn’t afford to send the kids to school.  After a few months of scraping by, Dawn had no choice but to return to Indianapolis with her children.

Together they moved in with Dawn’s mother, Kitty.   Dawn tried to get her old job back at a local Sam’s Club, but discovered that they no longer had a place for her.

Which brings us to today.  Dawn is still unemployed.  Michel can’t send child support checks from Peru because he too is still out of work.   He hopes to one day return to the U.S., but the government has made it clear that he cannot re-apply for another five years.

Shepherd’s food pantry is a lifeline for families like Dawn’s.

With no money for food or clothes, Dawn’s situation is pretty bleak.

Not Desperate

Yet despite this hardship, Dawn is not desperate.  She isn’t hopeless.  Why?  Because Shepherd Community Center is there for her.

Shepherd’s food pantry provides Dawn’s family with food when times are lean.  It provides after-school tutoring for her kids.  Every Saturday morning they offer a free medical clinic.  They even help Dawn with Christmas.

Last December, Dawn felt terrible.  She had literally nothing to give her children for Christmas.  She couldn’t afford a single toy.  On top of that, it was the middle of winter and her kids didn’t even have coats.

But Shepherd stepped in.  Through their Christmas adopt-a-family program, a family from suburban Indianapolis “adopted” Dawn and the kids for the holidays.  They bought gifts, helped with Christmas dinner and, when they discovered the need, bought Dawn’s children coats.

Because of Shepherd Community Center, Dawn is no longer alone.

“There would have been no Christmas without Shepherd.” She said with tears in her eyes.

After telling me this, Dawn shook her head in amazement.  She still can’t believe anyone would care.

—-

Things are still very tough for Dawn and her family.  Michele is still hundreds of miles away.  But Shepherd Community Center is here. And through the support of Shepherd, Dawn can face the future with courage.

Dawn is no longer alone.

This past week I have been working on a small side project for Elanco, an Indianapolis-based animal health company with a strong focus on ending global hunger.  For the project, I spent time interviewing several families and individuals connected with Shepherd Community Center, one of World Next Door’s partner ministries.

Each story I heard gave such a unique perspective on hunger, poverty and the incredible work of Shepherd that I had no choice but to share them here.

You’ll find the other stories here.  I encourage you to read them all.  Who knows?  Maybe they’ll change your perspective as much as they did mine…

———- 

It was early afternoon on a chilly autumn day when I went to visit Joe.  His house, about a ten minute walk from Shepherd Community Center is in the middle of a struggling neighborhood on the near-east side of Indianapolis.

Despite the cold (and the fact that I had forgotten a jacket), I decided to walk.

When I got to the house, I noticed a bearded man in the front yard shoving fallen leaves into a plastic trash bag.

Joe and Barbra’s neighborhood, hit hard by the financial crisis.

“Are you Joe?” I asked.

“Yeah, that’s me.” He said.  We shook hands. 

“Come on in.”

Inside the tiny two-bedroom house Joe introduced me to his mother, Barbra.  After a bit of small talk about the weather (and after I explained just who I was and what I was doing!), the three of us sat down in their small, cramped living room.

I began asking them about their lives.

Never Been Wealthy

Barbra was more than happy to tell me all about herself and her family.  When I began probing a bit to understand their current economic situation, she started telling me about her early days.

“Well,” she began, “our family has never been wealthy.”

Joe and his mother, Barbra in their small living room.

Barbra, who is now 78 years old, dropped out of high school at age 14 to work.  It was one year after the end of World War Two, and the American economy was still recovering from the Great Depression.  Her family needed the money.

A few years later she landed a relatively well-paying job packing and sorting medications for Eli Lilly, but this was not to last.  After having nine children, Barbra needed to stay home, relying on her husband’s modest income as a tool and die maker to provide for the family.

After showing me an old black and white picture of several of her children, Barbra described what it was like raising a family with very little money.  “We never had expensive vacations,” she explained.

“What did you do for vacations?” I asked.

“Well, sometimes we would drive down to Shelbyville and go to The Nickel where they had hamburgers for a nickel… although you can’t do that anymore!” She laughed.  “All the kids would get hamburgers and then we’d go to a park where they could run around.  They loved that.”

Barbra showing me a picture of several of her children. Joe is the little one on the far right of the picture.

For some reason, this fact really hit me hard.  Over the years my family has gone on vacations to Florida, New York City, Cape Cod… But their family went to Shelbyville, about 30 minutes southeast of Indianapolis.  I didn’t realize until then just how much I’ve taken all those “exotic” vacations for granted.

A Difficult Situation

Barbra continued her story. As the years went by her children grew up, moved out and started families of their own.  Unfortunately, the family’s economic situation never really improved.  Some of her kids moved to other states.  Some even lost contact with her forever.

Today, Barbra lives with her youngest son, Joe.   Because of her ongoing illnesses and Joe’s recent disability (a severely broken ankle due to a construction accident at his former job), they are caught in a difficult situation.  Barbra is too sick and old to work, and Joe can’t get his old roofing job back because of his ankle.

Besides, if Joe were to find a job, he’d have to spend just about every dollar he made to pay for someone to take care of his mother.

So, they rely on Barbra’s social security checks to pay the rent.  For food, they use the food stamps Joe qualifies for because of his disability.

It isn’t enough.

Barbra was excited to show me a pair of fleece-lined shoes she bought for $1 at a nearby church clothing bank.

Even after hours of coupon clipping, they rarely make it to the end of the month with food to spare.  And with no income other than Barbra’s measly social security checks, they have almost no money to pay for other necessities like clothes.

“We go to K-Mart maybe one time a year,” Barbra explained. 

That fact hit me like a ton of bricks.  I had never thought of a new piece of clothing from a store like K-Mart as a luxury before.

Each month, as the food stamps disappear, hunger begins to loom.  Joe and Barbra wonder how they will get food on the table.

A Beacon of Hope

Thankfully, they are not alone in their struggle against hunger.  Just 10 minutes away is Shepherd Community Center, a beacon of hope and life for Barbra and her son.

When they struggle to make ends meet at the end of the month, Shepherd is there to provide basic necessities like food, household items and hygiene supplies.  Every Saturday, Shepherd offers a free medical clinic, indispensible for an aging woman with no health insurance.

The staff and volunteers of Shepherd are living out the kingdom of God for Barbra and Joe in some incredible, and tangible, ways.

After chatting for a little while longer, I gathered my things, thanked them and left.  As I made my way back to Shepherd that afternoon, I began to wonder… “What if Shepherd wasn’t here?  What would Joe and Barbra do then?”

Shepherd’s food pantry is a literal life-saver for many families on the near-east side of Indianapolis.

I honestly don’t have an answer to that question.  Shepherd has become such an integral pillar of support on the near-east side of Indy that few families in their neighborhood can claim to be unaffected.

—–

It’s a new month and Joe can once again go to the grocery store, coupons and food stamps in hand.  As the end of the month draws near, however, things will undoubtedly get tight again.  But Joe and Barbra can take great comfort in a simple fact:  Shepherd won’t let them go hungry.

Shepherd Community Center has been working in that neighborhood for 25 years, and it’s not going anywhere…

In October of 2009, I had the opportunity to spend around three weeks “embedded” with Shepherd Community Center in downtown Indianapolis.  I lived with a family of first-generation immigrants from Mexico and spent my days observing and interacting with Shepherd’s many ministries to the struggling neighborhood on the near-east side.

Shepherd's sign, a symbol of hope for a struggling neighborhood.

Overall, my short time with Shepherd left me in awe of the work they are doing in their neighborhood.  Simply spending a few days hanging out with their junior high students gave me hope that true change is possible.  But hearing the tragic story of an immigrant from Honduras reminded me that there is so much work left to be done.

Thankfully, Shepherd Community Center is there, in the middle of it all, fighting to break the cycle of poverty.

It may be an uphill battle, but with Shepherd fighting for them, these kids now have a chance!

Breaking the Cycle

My newest adventure may not be to some exotic, overseas destination, but it is definitely to a place that is just as foreign to me… downtown Indianapolis!

Click here to read this travel journal…

A Tale of Two Cultures

For second generation immigrant children, growing up in the U.S. is not always easy…

Click here to read this article…

Culture Guide: Telenovelas!

A simple guide to understanding these shows that air around the world…

Click here to read this culture guide…

The Ride-Along

A “ride-along” with a local police officer gave me a newfound respect for those who work every night to keep us safe…

Click here to read this travel journal…

Photo Gallery: A Second Chance

For kids growing up in the midst of poverty, gangs and hopelessness, Shepherd Community Center is offering them a second chance at life…

Click here to see this photo gallery…

The American Dream

In an interview with a Honduran immigrant last week, I discovered why an experienced medical technician is now putting on roofing tiles in the suburbs…

Click here to read this article…

Angel M. was a highly skilled medical technician in Honduras for 30 years. His family lived well. His job sent him on business trips around the world. By Honduran standards, Angel was a very successful man.

Today, he’s part of a roofing crew in Noblesville making $40 a day. He struggles to feed his wife and daughter. He has no health insurance. And just last month, he was diagnosed with intestinal cancer.

What happened? How did someone so successful end up doing manual labor for less than the minimum wage? Why did he come to America when he once had a job so good?

These were the questions I sought to answer when I sat down with Angel last week. In our one hour interview, I heard a story that not only broke my heart, but convinced me that something needs to change in our country…

-

A Chance at Prosperity

Angel was born to a poor carpenter in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras. Though struggling with poverty, his parents worked, scrimped and saved to provide him with a University education. Thankfully, Angel was a gifted student, and after graduation found a good job in his chosen field: medicine.

His job included a mix of responsibilities. He was part medical technician, part salesman, part teacher. He traveled to many countries around the world, and made quite a few trips to the U.S.

Angel, an immigrant from Honduras.

Depending on the bonuses and commissions he made, Angel brought in as much as $20,000 per year. It may not sound like much by American standards, but it’s almost ten times as much as Honduras’ GDP per capita.

Angel’s hard work and skill helped to bring his family out of poverty. His four daughters were able to attend the finest bi-lingual schools in the country, and were on their way to successful careers themselves.

-

Unexpected Consequences

Then, in 1998, Hurricane Mitch swept across Central America. The hurricane killed 6000 people in Honduras alone, did $2-3 billion in damage and devastated the country’s economy. For the next three years, Honduras struggled under a severe economic recession.

In 2001, Angel’s company went bankrupt. He lost his job. And everything came crashing down.

Because of the new economic climate in Honduras, Angel was not able to find work. He could no longer afford to send his daughters to their school, and they were forced to drop out.

For five years, his family struggled with the decision of what to do. With every year that went by, Angel’s age made it harder and harder for him to find a job. Finally, in desperation, he made the decision to come to the U.S., confident that his experience in medicine would eventually land him a well-paying job.

Because the business visa from his previous job was still valid, Angel was able to enter the country legally. However, to land an American job in medicine, he would have to acquire a specific license, as well as go through the rigorous process of immigration. The license alone cost $10,000… no small fee for a man with little more than the clothes on his back.

For his first month in the U.S., Angel lived in Florida. He searched high and low for any job that would help pay the bills. Nothing. Washing dishes, doing construction, mowing lawns… every job was already taken.

-

With little hope for a consistent income, Angel ended up here in my hometown.

Barely Making It

Eventually, Angel gave up on finding a job in Florida and moved in with relatives in Indianapolis. Here he was able to find a string of jobs paying minimum or less-than-minimum wage.

He did siding. He was a janitor. He drywalled.

Now, two years after his wife and daughter moved to the U.S. to join him, he is living in a small house on the near-east side and putting on roofing tiles in the suburbs.

Roofing is hard work. Each house his crew works on takes two full eight hour days. Because undocumented laborers don’t have the same rights as documented ones, any accidental damage to the roof or to gutters comes straight out of their paychecks.

Last week, for example, Angel put in two long days of work. He came home with a check for $80.

With such measly pay, the $10,000 license is looking more and more like an unattainable dream. Add that to the $2000-3000 it will cost him to go through the official immigration process, the high cost of food and transportation in his day-to-day life and his newly discovered intestinal cancer, and it’s clear that he won’t be finding a better job anytime soon…

-

The American Dream

As I sat listening to Angel’s story, I became more and more upset.

Here is a guy who has a whole range of useful skills and a broad spectrum of experience, a man who has a charming sense of humor and a big heart. He loves his family. He works hard. Yet he lives in poverty.

It’s hard to reconcile his story with what I have been taught throughout my life.

Here in the States, we love the whole “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” mentality. Elementary school students across the country are taught that with enough hard work and dedication, they can accomplish anything. But Angel has been “pulling himself up by his bootstraps” his entire life, and he’s still poor.

By definition, Angel should be living “the American Dream.” But because he wasn’t born here, he is faced with a far more difficult reality.

-

Hope for the Future

Shepherd Community Center, which proved to be instrumental in keeping Angel afloat during his hardest times in the U.S.

However, even with every right to be bitter, Angel is remarkably happy. With every right to be hopeless, he exudes a calm and expectant hope. With every right to just give up, Angel presses on.

And although the odds are stacked against him, Angel has been getting help in a variety of remarkable ways.

With the help of Shepherd Community Center, Angel’s family has had access to food, counseling and after-school programs for his daughter. Through Wishard Hospital, he has received free medical care for his cancer. And through Shepherd Community Church, he has found a significant outlet for his intelligence and education as a lay pastor for the church’s Hispanic population.

Like his parents before him, he has been scrimping and saving with his wife to send their daughter to college. Thanks to their dedication and a few scholarships, she is now studying history and anthropology at Indiana University.

It’s heartbreaking to think that Angel will most likely end his life in the same situation as his impoverished parents, but it’s incredibly uplifting to know that his daughter has a chance.

Perhaps for her, living in America will amount to more than just a dream…

For kids growing up in the midst of poverty, gangs and hopelessness, Shepherd Community Center is offering them a second chance at life…

What do I know about my city? I mean, what do I really know? Well, let’s see… We have a racetrack, a pretty cool children’s museum and what… a canal?

Um, ok. To be completely honest, I know very little about Indianapolis.

But my ignorance doesn’t extend to just our sightseeing destinations. I also know very little about the people who live downtown, the issues they deal with and the struggles they face every single day.

In my world of video games, manicured lawns and caramel macchiatos, it’s easy to forget that there are families struggling to survive just 40 minutes from my front door. Sure, I’ve seen poverty in India, Ukraine and Kenya, but when was the last time I spared a thought for the urban poor in my own hometown?

The fact is, I can’t remember.

But all that is about to change. As of this past week, I am living downtown for one month. And not in some upscale gentrified neighborhood, either. I’m staying smack in the middle of a struggling community with a first generation immigrant family from Mexico.

I will be exploring urban poverty from the inside, doing police ride-alongs and spending time in our public school system. But most importantly, I will be learning all about the work of Shepherd Community Center, which is dedicated to breaking the cycle of poverty on the near-East side.

Shepherd Community Center, striving to break the cycle.

And what a cycle… In Shepherd’s neighborhood, less than 30% of students graduate High School. Almost a quarter of the population is under the nation’s poverty line, and out of 40,000 zip codes in the U.S., 46201 is 16^th in the nation in foreclosure filings.

Parents in this community can’t afford to send their children to private schools. Often working two jobs just to pay the rent, they don’t have the time or energy to adequately care for their kids. Their children grow up, fail school, get minimum wage jobs and eventually have kids of their own.

And the cycle continues.

But Shepherd is here to break that cycle. Through preschool classes, after-school tutoring and summer programs, Shepherd gives the children of this neighborhood a chance to succeed in their education. Through parenting classes, a food pantry and a free medical clinic every Saturday, Shepherd gives parents a chance to properly care for their kids.

Shepherd helps to give kids the education they deserve.

While I am here, I will be writing about these programs and more. I will be learning from Shepherd’s staff, interviewing families from the community and attempting to discover what God is doing in this place.

It may not be as exotic as eating goat brains in India or living in a slum in Kenya, but living downtown will undoubtedly teach me a ton about the brokenness of this world and the hope that can be found in the Kingdom of God.

By the end of October, I may still get lost trying to find the Indianapolis Zoo, but I can tell you one thing for sure… I’m going to know a lot more about my city!