Every week, volunteers from HOPE worldwide Colorado Springs Chapter, members of the Colorado Springs Christian Church gather in a local church partner’s kitchen to make about 200 chicken and rice burritos. As the volunteers enjoy each other’s company, they churn out the burritos in about an hour. Everyone learns the “tricks of the trade” and how to correctly fold and wrap the burritos to create a hot, portable meal for some of the homeless in Colorado Springs.
Jason Wells, the Chapter Director for HOPE worldwide Colorado Springs is always amazed by the volunteers. “We have such tremendous volunteers – and not just from the Colorado Springs Christian Church. We also partner with other local organizations to take care of the ‘least of these’ in the Pikes Peak region. People want to help others and they want to have their hearts moved. This program gives them that opportunity.”
It’s a bitter Saturday afternoon at ”Choo-Choo” park in downtown Colorado Springs. Another snowstorm is already starting to pound the city, but still they come. Young people, strong enough to camp by the river year round, older folks, beaten down by life and forced to live in shelters, anyone who is in need knows it’s okay to be here. They come to this park for a little comfort, a little hope. They come for a hot meal, words of encouragement, and fellowship that will carry them through another week of being homeless.
As the caravan of volunteers pulls up to the park, many of the faces in the crowd are familiar. Since starting the program 6 years ago, Reggie and Rose Henry have become friends to many of the homeless in the crowd. Reggie states, “The food is only part of what we want to do here. It is just as important that we reach out to them as people and show them that God has not forgotten them.”
And the Henrys would know. They were homeless and drug addicts as well. “The tragedy of being homeless is not only physical, it is emotional and spiritual as well. We really want to let the love of Christ shine through to our friends here – even on a cold day like today.”
