March 20, 2024
“Life is like a roller coaster. If it weren’t for all the ups and downs you wouldn’t even get on the ride.” -Ambrose Ian Sullivan
What a night! This report is a challenge, my friends. I will be honest. There was a lot of good done, too. Let me share it. Bear with me, please. I’m going to power through this one.
I had Nick (my best bro and Jet’s Pizza- Nick) and Traci with me in the van last night. Nick held down the drivers seat. I covered food (mostly) while Traci covered clothes and hygiene (mostly).
We started off on the Southwest side. The medical team had a client to check in on. We drove around until we saw a couple of people who we could tell needed our help. There were very sweet older men. Very kind, and always humble. One of the men mentioned that they just found a clean space in an abandoned building to sleep in.
Nick asked “Hey! Do you want a lantern?”
His entire body lit up like a lighthouse. He was so happy he danced a little shuffle, so I did a little prayer dance, too. Those lanterns are so cool! I had more but I ran out of AA batteries. I’m going to find the lanterns on Amazon and put them on the Wishlist.
As we sat across from the Coney serving random homeless people who walked by, Nick noticed a couple of guys at the back of the lot. They were digging around near the dumpsters. He’s got such a talent for outreach. I checked with the medic team, then walked towards them.
“It’s Magdalene’s Mission and street outreach. Do want homemade food and a blanket, dears? Come up to my van. Traci and I can help you out.”
“Do you have those hygiene kits, too?” One of the two elderly men asked.
“I do! I do! That ambulance has doctors and nurses who want to make sure you are healthy. Why don’t you go check in with them. Traci and I will get you some food and clothes ready.” The smiles were already contagious.
“Do you have a coat? May I have a coat if you have one?” His own was worn down to tatters.
“We do! Go to the ambulance first, and I’ll have everything ready for you.”
That’s how outreach is done.
While my team was waiting for the medical team to do their medical thing- I saw a doggie! Homeless animals are my Achilles Heel. Our Secretary, Wen, had the coolest idea. She uses the empty peanut butter jars from the sandwiches and refills them with dog food that she has gotten pet stores to donate to her from their damaged bags.
I saw the dog walking around a good 50 feet away. I grabbed some food. He wasn’t going to come up to me, or anywhere near me. He was beautiful though. He was being guarded. I opened the jar. His ears perked up, but he wasn’t going to risk being caught. I shook the jar. His eyes were locked on mine.
I told him, “It’s okay buddy. You’re a good boy. We can do this on your terms, sweetheart.” I emptied the food on the ground. Then I backed away. The further away I moved from the food, the closer he would come to it. Pretty baby was hungry, too. I ran back to the van to grab another jar of dog food.
“Kayla. Don’t touch that dog!” Nick and Traci warned me, amused, from the van.
“He won’t come near me. He don’t trust anything. He’s just hungry.”
The dog and I did the dance 2 more times. I think 25 feet is the closest he could come. But man, did he LOVE that food! He even ran off with the peanut butter jars and buried them for later.
Another successful outreach recipient!
Then the evening started getting weird. Sunset was a giant orange dipped slowly behind the concrete forks. When the sun dropped all the way down to the ground it exploded and pink and orange sun juice sprayed all over the clouds. But just before the sun crashed onto the ground, I saw a long slender body in the distance. He waved his arms. He moved with a purpose. I thought I recognized him. He came up and gave me a big hug, then said, “Yeah, it’s me. I was in jail for a couple of months.”
I told him that he looked terrible. I was glad he saw us. I’ve been looking around for that buddy for about a year now. Wow. A year changed a lot. I went back to the van shook. I barely recognized him. That is not how I remembered my Wrestler. Crazy! Dang, he looked so bad I barely recognized him. He didn’t look the same.
Still waiting to hear back from the patient…
The medical team led us to a new spot. This fort was cool. It was hidden in plain sight, but out of eye line. I jumped out of my van, and a nurse jumped out of the ambulance. We approached the fort in the same way we do, announcing our presence so we don’t scare anyone. I couldn’t believe who popped out.
The Real Wrestler!!! I don’t know who the heck I thought the other guy was. I meet too many people. The other guy said he had the same name, and it threw me for a loop. But Wrestler is special to me. We have a connection. He has intelligence behind those eyes. He is still with the same buddy he was a year ago. Good. We traded numbers. One of them has a cell phone they can share now. (Thank you, Obama). I’m going to help them get connected to the people who are getting people off the street and into housing. It was a good, long, real as life, hug time. We were thrilled to be reconnected again.
I was getting ready to pack up some meals for them when…
KITTY!
I saw a black kitty! Oh, she was precious! I grabbed some cans of cat food from the from seat and opened them up for the sweet thing. Cats kill the rats, snakes, and spiders. Just like when people lived outside a thousand years ago, cats and dogs were living nearby, keeping us safe. That’s why I drop everything to feed a homeless animal. They are my unsung heroes on the street.
We served Wrestler and his tentmate as well as a couple of other random homeless people who walked by.
Next, we hit the abandoned minivan. People pour out of it like a clown car. Then they make lines beside the ambulance and the van. They wait for their provisions as well as their hugs. This poor girl was trying to look through clean clothes but her boyfriend (?) kept rushing her to get into a car with another guy. She was feisty, though. I made sure she had pepper spray before she walked away.
“Thank you. Thank God.” She muttered as she walked away.
You’re welcome, baby. And I do.
Last stop.
Saw my buddy, Big Hands the skater dude. I hadn’t seen him in 2 or three months. We’ve been at his forts that he builds. The dude is so dang clever. He just hasn’t been there. The little dude he was squatting with was also a good buddy of mine. He told me that he used to work for Nick at Jet’s Pizza before things got out of control with him. I was excited to reintroduce him last night. Maybe it would remind him of the person he was capable of being. Inspire some self-preservation. So, I asked Big Hands, “Where is Kyle at?”
Big Hands looked down. He said, “Oh honey. You don’t know? Kyle is dead. He was stabbed. The autopsy said that he died outside from exposure.”
What? No!
Big Hands held me tight, and we cried. He filled me in on some details and theories. And then the medical team had to go. So, I had to go. He and I were still grieving for Kyle as Nick pulled us away from the muddy lot.
Kyle was my buddy. He was the one who had the best stories. We were brutally honest with one another about reality. We respected one another for that. He was brilliant, too. He talked about how his addiction got out of control. How he got to a point way earlier than his friends where he always needed more. He said his tolerance level would go up no matter how much, or what he used. Until he was beyond what his friends were comfortable with anymore. Until he ended up in Detroit. He’s from Livingston County. A lot of the younger crowd are all white kids from nice homes and nice families in nice neighborhoods. Traci and I are surprised by how many are from Brighton, Howell and Hartland.
I loved you, Kyle. You were a messed-up kid, but you are real to me.
The van ride home was quiet. We came across a homeless woman holding a sign at a traffic light on the way out of town. Trai grabbed a hygiene kit, handed it to me, Nick yelled for her to hurry up and come get it. She did, just as the light turned green. Her smile was so genuinely full of grace.
As I said last week, you never know when the last time you see someone will be.
I guess my lesson for tonight is to just be grateful for every opportunity I can be there and help.
Because that’s how we do it in Detroit.
Amen.
To contribute to Magdalene’s Mission: Venmo- MagdalenesMission7
