Blessings Church: So thankful to the Lord for allowing me to see another day! And so thankful to have a chance to serve those in need once again! A big thanks to our partners, donors and volunteers for continuing to support us in our desire to serve! # Blessed to be a blessing! My visual journal! Love you the Rev!
Blessings Church: So thankful to the Lord for allowing me to see another day! And so thankful to serve our sisters on Mother’s Day! Happy Mother’s Day to all of the Mother’s around the world! # Blessed to be a blessing! My visual journal! Love you the Rev!
Blessings Church: So thankful to the Lord for allowing me to see another day. And so thankful to the Lord for allowing me to serve those that are in need once again. Thank everyone for your prayers and donations that continue to allow us to serve. And remember, homelessness is not discriminatory. # Blessed to be a blessing! My visual journal! Love you the Rev!
Read the News and Observer article here. Tiffany Edwurds was sipping coffee from a Styrofoam cup, huddled under a blanket outside Raleigh’s homeless shelter, when the Rev. Phil Brickle strode up and handed her a crisp $20 bill. She held the money in her mittened hand, trying to keep it from flying away in the wind, then thanked the pastor and asked if he could recommend a good dentist. “I have a tooth that needs to come out,” said Edwurds, 40. “I’ve been homeless since May 17, and I haven’t been in a shelter yet. Been trying to get my tooth pulled.” Brickle had no medical referral in his pocket, but for the last six months, he has handed out roughly $9,000 in cash on the Raleigh streets, he said — one $20 bill at a time. On Saturday, he set up shop outside the Oak City Multi-Services Center on South Wilmington Street, where homeless people gather for a weekend lunch. Some live inside the men’s shelter next-door. But since the COVID-19 pandemic struck, people who are homeless report the shelter has been operating at a more limited capacity, meaning far more of them take shelter in the woods nearby, setting up tents and mattresses on the ground. The men and women who took $20 last week endured sub-freezing temperatures, near-constant rain and the threat of an ice storm. Some who accepted Brickle’s money spent it on propane tanks for use inside those tents. As head of Lost Sheep Outreach Ministry, Brickle runs his one-man rescue operation with donated funds. On this particular Saturday, his $550 came from the North Raleigh Methodist Men. “Some people got stimulus checks, and some people got none,” he said, gesturing to the dozens of homeless around him. “Some people don’t have mail boxes. Some people don’t have post office boxes. Some people don’t have an address. People out here are struggling to survive.” In the pandemic, Raleigh’s Helping Hand Mission has seen demand for emergency meals shoot up by 35%, prompting the charity to set up a free-food box on a New Bern Avenue corner. An N.C. State University study shows North Carolina families working with less household income and, in increasing numbers, facing grocery shortages. Brickle knows it well. His $20 project is one of many designed to connect with this population, including his annual Christmas toy giveaway. A former heroin addict, he knows the hard road back to stable housing and regular meals for those who’ve hit bottom, and he offers a hand with some first-step cash. As he hands out money, he snaps a picture of each recipient, posting them to Facebook with the caption, “So thankful to the Lord for letting me see another day.” “We know there’s going to be some people who won’t use it properly,” he said. “But we can’t afford to weed that out right now.” He chooses different spots each Saturday, and he remembers faces so the money doesn’t land in the same hands every week. Not everyone who […]
Blessings Church: So thankful to the Lord for allowing me to see another day. And so thankful for my brother Lou Sawicki for joining me today to serve those that are in need. Last night the weather was brutal, and people were tucking and ducking to stay safe and warm. And one more thing church, homelessness is not discriminatory. Thanks again everyone for your prayers and donations. And remember, together we can make a difference together. # Blessed to be a blessing! My visual journal! Love you the Rev!
Blessings Church: So thankful to the Lord for allowing me to see another day. And so grateful to have a chance to serve those in need. Thanks again so much to those who continue to pray and send donations so that we can continue to serve those that are on the street. # Blessed to be a blessing! My visual journal! Love you the Rev!