Overnight Duty

Comfortable and warm enough

After a hearty dinner of Nellie’s stir-fried pork and cabbage, the Home and Hope guests helped themselves to Susan’s cherry-and-pineapple coffee cake. My contribution was steamed rice and the $5 rotisserie chicken from Costco. (I always pick up a chicken for the kids; most prefer it to the main dish unless it's pizza.)

Hank from the host Lutheran church arrived at 9. Hank, like your humble blogger, is a retiree who is able sleep on the floor. However, the number of volunteers who can handle overnight duty is dwindling--most of the younger ones have families to take care of and jobs to go to the next day--and the church might well have to cut back or cease hosting next year.

It's just four families that we can shelter at a time, but we're making a difference, and I hope they can find a way to continue.