Meet Dan Major. As a chaplain in the Denver Rescue Mission’s New Life Program, he counsels men who are overcoming addictions and seeking to attain self-sufficiency.
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From left to right: Danny,
Christina,
and Dantee Major; Pam Rice;
Ella Major;
Annie Campbell;
Danielle Major;
Tom Bagwell; Ronomy Major;
Larry Campbell.
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For those like Dan working at a ministry or a service organization, giving of oneself and observing so much need, day in and day out, can prove exhausting. After listening and counseling all day long, nonprofit workers often (understandably) want nothing more than to put up their feet and kick back when they get home. But Dan doesn’t slow down after 5 p.m. He keeps giving.
For three years now, he and members of his church, High and Lifted Up Ministries, have mentored families and seniors in need through the Family and Senior Homeless Initiative. Danny speaks enthusiastically about the process of mentoring: “Things start blossoming. We’re able to see people make some adjustments in their thinking. [They see that] … our life is a product of our thinking yesterday. Your life tomorrow is a product of your thinking today. We are persistent with love.”
And this patient, persistent love yields real results.
Recently, the High and Lifted Up team finished officially mentoring couple Steve and Estella, who were overwhelmed with unemployment, homelessness, caring for their two grandchildren, and looking after Estella’s mother. Steve was a hard worker, Dan says, but when his company downsized, he lost his job. At this time, the family became homeless and moved in with Estella’s brother. “It was a very, very small place,” Dan says. “There was not enough room to accommodate a family of five.” On top of this, Estella and Steve formed some unhealthy relationships with neighbors in the area. Gradually, other areas – finances, the job search – slid as well. “They were not selective about their environments,” Dan says. “They needed help managing money, time, relationships, and themselves.”
It can be tempting for mentors to jump right in and try to solve everything. However, Dan and his team knew that first and foremost, they had to earn Steve and Estella’s trust. “We’re not there to judge them, just to be a support.” The mentor team met with Estella and Steve regularly and tried to help them tackle one problem at a time. At first, the family was a little mistrustful of their mentor team, but Dan was not offended by this. He saw suspicion as a natural consequence of their life challenges: “People have been pushed around. They are very protective of their space. Many of them have been so abused. We notice that to grasp the idea of love is difficult because they have been damaged so badly. They can’t believe that someone could love me, [or that] someone is genuinely concerned for me.”
Slowly but surely, Estella and Steve began to trust their new friends at High and Lifted Up Ministries. With the help of the mentor team, Estella and Steve found a new home of their own, just a few blocks away from some of their mentors. When they relocated, Estella and Steve escaped some destructive and unhealthy relationships with old neighbors. “Now they are living on their own, they have a budget, they are watching the company they keep, and they don’t let people impose on them anymore,” Dan says. In addition, with the mentor team’s encouragement and guidance, Steve has found two jobs, and the family has gained much more stability.
“Their future looks great,” Dan says. “They have a support team - they know they have only to call us.”
When asked what he would say to faith communities considering mentoring through the Family and Senior Homeless Initiative, Chaplain Major says, “I would tell people that a lot of people need a helping hand. They need to be informed about life and its abundance. The way that we have this mentoring set up is a thing of beauty, a thing of love, especially when you know you are doing something against the norm, lending yourself to another person. This venue helps you expand yourself. It teaches you some things about yourself as you help families in need. It’s indescribable. A person that is willing to go above and beyond the call of neighborly behaviors should try to do this. Do everything you can to make it happen.” |
