Part III of a three part series relating to the Periphery Exhibit. How is it that people who’ve grown up in poverty spanning generations and have experienced many years of living in camps under bridges, waiting out extremely cold spells in emergency shelters and medicated with all sorts of substances and questionable activities can “come home”? If you have never lived in a homeless camp you might not understand the magnitude of what has to be given up to enter stable housing. And gaining that understanding and then demonstrating compassion as our friends struggle with those ramifications is important. To leave a homeless camp and go into an apartment alone means adapting to confined space, having deadlines and schedules to meet, losing camaraderie and the fellowship with other campers. It’s not safe to let your friends on the street know that you are going into an apartment because they will ask for all sorts of favors like showers and heat and the use of a stove. Landlords don’t tolerate that type of sharing well at all.

A Philosophy of Change

At Springs Rescue Mission we have given serious thought to how this change that is much more than physical surroundings can actually be accomplished. Brain science, practicality and the scripture have been examined and pondered in designing a theory of change. I wish that I could take credit, but team members far wiser than I have put together this remarkable thought process to guide the delivery of our services. It begins with a story as most good things do. This theory starts with the Samaritan woman at the well, a story we’ve heard many times. Jesus was at that well and should never have been talking to a woman. Far more scandalous was the fact that she was Samaritan. But he did talk to her. And discern and invite her into relationship. It changed her life and the lives of others who witnessed her story. And so it is as we think about helping our friends who have to live outside.The SRM Theory of Change is the philosophical platform that serves as a starting point for understanding how our homeless friends can go from Point A to Point B and eventually into stable housing. And it all starts with relationship. Nothing really happens in anyone’s life outside of relationship. We weren’t created to be isolated. Jesus talked to the woman. He asked her story, and even though he already knew, he waited until she could tell part of the story before letting her know that he already knew her. Hope flows out of relationship, and once hope is found, empowerment for change quickly follows. The other two parts of the SRM Theory of Change are transformation and restoration, and our friends usually “graduate” to bigger and better things before we at RAP get to observe transformation and restoration. Relationship with the knowing and sharing it brings is the true starting line for change from camper to apartment dweller.

What do you need?

A while back, as the team at RAP was thinking about ways to enhance our care for the community of people living without houses, we had a focus group. And we simply asked, “What do you need or want most from us?” The answer was overwhelmingly “Look me in the eyes and talk to me.” So, we do. And, as much like Jesus as we can, we hear their stories. It’s in acceptance of the story, and compassionate relationship, that the seeds of change are nurtured and begin to grow.

If you are ready to be a part of watching the seeds of change grow in the lives of people experiencing homelessness in Colorado Springs you can start by looking them in the eye at Aaron Anderson’s photography exhibit Periphery at the Fine Arts Center until September 5. Then, take the steps to become engaged in relationship, hope building and empowerment by learning how you can join Springs Rescue Mission in executing CHANGE by calling 719.632.1822.In memory of Pedro, who loved his dog Rey, plantains and pork chops and died before he found a home on earth, but after many people looked him in the eyes at Periphery.