Men in Capes
by Mary Mayberry, Kaio Community Member Sometimes working with Emmaus can get heavy. We often hear heartbreaking stories from our men. We spend time with guys who are on the streets, doing what they can to survive in desperate…
“Does anyone know how to break into a car?!?”
by Carolyn Green, long-suffering wife of Emmaus founder :-) Prior to moving to Ohio over seven years ago, my family and I lived in a condo that shared the parking lot with the building that housed Emmaus Ministries. One…
Children of Light in Dark Places
by Joel Brown, Kaio Community Member Back in October, I was doing Outreach with Sean and Sill on the South Side. We sat on our usual park bench with a bag of candy, pretzels, and granola bars, enjoying the fall…
A Great Adventure or a Terrifying Experience
by Doug Van Ramshorst, Former Outreach Director This piece was originally written for a March 2014 Emmaus publication. There are so many things that you can only experience on Outreach. One night I saw a guy juggling fire to the…
The Little Things of Fall Outreach
by Caleb Anderson, Former Outreach Coordinator We bundle up and watch as the crowded streets become sparser, with the temperature dropping fast. Outreach is getting colder, and contacts’ requests for snacks change from sodas and slushies to coffee and…
The Surprising, Healing Love of Christ
by Joel Brown, Kaio Community Member A few weeks ago, I learned that my grandfather had died unexpectedly in his sleep in his home in southwestern Virginia. A few hours after I got the news, I headed over to…
The Noise Inside Your Head
by Ellen Aldridge, Former Kaio Community Member These past few weeks sure have been a doozey. A few weeks ago, I had the unfortunate experience of getting initiated into the “Hit by a Door on a Bike,” Club and my…
Vegas
by Mary Mayberry, Kaio Community Member Having just moved to Chicago a couple of months ago, I never expected one of my biggest lessons so far to be about Vegas. But it's surprising sometimes how God works. Outreach in…
God of the Mess
by Heather Truex, Kaio Community Member “You know, I want to be a pilot in the military, but no one thinks I can do it. I’m not even sure I think I can do it anymore.” It’s a rainy…
Chicago Youth Gain Job Skills at Monarch
by Mireya Fouchè, Monarch Thrift Shop Assistant Manager This past summer, Monarch Thrift Shop participated in Heartland Alliance’s Family Works Program, employing two high school students, Tiara and Kiara, who happened to be twin sisters! In the following post, Monarch’s…