Most of us have never been homeless; we have little frame of reference for this situation. 

But homelessness can happen to almost anyone; it can be short term or long term.  It can be semi self-inflicted but it is nearly always the result of a sequence of unfortunate events.  The city of St. Louis has many homeless individuals.

Centenary UMC, through "The Bridge" program, helps homeless people in a variety of ways. 

• Centenary offers sanctuary.  The staff and volunteers provide a welcoming environment where the homeless can come in, rest, and get out of the elements.
  
• "The Bridge" offers many services to the homeless to help lower barriers to shelter and employment - a permanent mailing address, voice mail boxes, birth certificates and identification, etc.
  
• Although they provide meals, they do not consider themselves a "soup kitchen".
  
• "The Bridge" also has an Emergency Pantry that gives away personal hygiene items and emergency food to individuals.
  
• In the colder months, "The Bridge" also gives away coats, scarves, hats, gloves, blankets and socks.
  

"The Bridge" offers an educational opportunity called "The Trail." 

The Trail is the journey a homeless person walks on a daily basis to try and get their nutritional and other basic human needs met.  If you are homeless, you might wake up in a shelter, on a park bench, or in an abandoned building and walk to Centenary Church for breakfast. After breakfast, you walk from place to place trying to get your nutritional and other needs met until you eventually find yourself back where you started, a shelter, a park bench, or an abandoned building.

"The Bridge" at Centenary offers an opportunity to walk an abbreviated Trail.  You can get a guided tour through the streets of downtown St. Louis and the opportunity to learn through experiencing "The Trail."  The Trail is approximately 4 miles of walking and takes about 2 hours.  The Trail is offered on demand and on the availability of the trail guide.

If learning about or helping these homeless Children of God is on your heart, and you would like to help with meal preparation, serving, greeting, counseling, office work or a variety of other ways, contact "The Bridge" directly: Debra Crowe at Centenary CARES, 1610 Olive St. Louis, MO 63103, by email or phone (314-421-3136) or contact Dan Stokes by email or phone (636-584-7003).