TLDR: After years of faithful service, Derek King is passing the leadership responsibility for our ministry to LOTS to Flint Risien. Please read below for information about LOTS and how to volunteer.
According to the LOTS website, we have over 3,000 people in the city of Houston who experience homelessness every day. Fr. Brad Sullivan, a Saint Dunstan’s Son by way of Betsy and Ron Sullivan, states, “Sometimes when people see others living on the streets, they see poor choices or drug addiction. At LOTS we see people. We see our brothers and sisters facing homelessness and we see the reason why they are facing homelessness. Sometimes mental illness makes holding down a job difficult. Sometimes being dropped off from prison and ready to turn your life around but finding no one there to meet you but a drug dealer ready to take you back. Sometimes simply losing a job and finding yourself unable to pay rent and living on the streets with nothing but what you can carry. These are reasons why people face homelessness, but behind all these reasons are people.” (https://www.lotshouston.org/2023-lots-video.html).
Lord of the Streets started in 1990 as a ministry of Trinity Episcopal Church to serve the homeless of Houston. It then became a Diocesan ministry in 1993. The agency provides daily programs, such as case management, counseling, advocacy, and direct care at their facility on Fannin Street. They also partner with a number of Episcopal churches to provide Sunday church services and breakfast at Trinity. Since the inception of LOTS, Saint Dunstan’s has had a team serving breakfast and befriending those suffering from homelessness. A group ranging from 8 to 20 people gather at our parking lot early on a Sunday morning to travel to Trinity. Once there, they cook, serve, and help clean up after breakfast. Just as important as the hot food, however, is the befriending, listening, and serving brothers and sisters experiencing very difficult circumstances in their lives. This ministry seeks to feed the body and strengthen the soul of people in crisis in accordance with LOTS three-prong mission: To relieve suffering; to help people develop a loving relationship with God, with self, and with others; and to rebuild lives that enhance people’s inherit dignity, develop habits of health of body, mind, and soul, and build meaningful engagement (Paraphrase from LOTS Mission).
For many years, Derek King coordinated this ministry for Saint Dunstan’s, engaging volunteers, coordinating transportation, supervising the work onsite, training, etc. We are very grateful for his love and care for those suffering from homelessness. Now that Derek has chosen to step down from this ministry, Flint Risien has stepped up to continue this important work. Not only are we one of the original teams at Sunday breakfast, but our own Andrew Johnson served as a Bishop’s Warden at LOTS for many years. Presently, Flint serves on LOTS vestry, after serving on Saint Dunstan’s vestry for three years. He is deeply involved with LOTS and loves the work he has done at the agency over the last year.
As we transition to new leadership, I want to use the opportunity to advocate for more volunteers for our team and to encourage additional financial support for this important work. We are currently recruiting a team of 10 to serve on October 5 and a team of 16 to cook and serve on December 21. Additionally, we are planning to fill 250 Manna Bags (125 for Hope Center Houston and 125 for LOTS) on Sunday, September 28th and on Sunday December 7th at 10:15am at the Mace Room. It costs about $1200 to purchase the supplies for these bags ($600 each). If you would like to contribute towards this expense, please send a donation to the Rector’s Discretionary Fund with a designation of “Manna Bags”.
Now, as we recruit new volunteers, I want to paint a picture of the people we need. I want people over the age of 16 who love the Lord and who really want to serve. I have found that dragging unwilling people to a shelter “because they need to see how those people live and become more grateful” is not a good idea for a homeless program. There are other ministries that are better suited for that type of awareness raising, such as our Dominican Republic Mission trips or the work we do at the food banks. I want all prospective volunteers to meet with Flint for a training on the behaviors and type of speech expected on site. I also want to formalize this ministry a bit by asking volunteers to wear appropriate clothing, such as full-length jeans, Saint Dunstan’s shirts, closed-toe shoes or sneakers, etc. In either case, please avoid overly revealing clothing.
Finally, please continue to pray for Lord of the Streets and for our own serving teams. Feel free to call Flint if you have any questions regarding volunteering or if you want to support LOTS financially. May our Lord continue to bless you,
Fr. Roman+
