Friendship Mission

By Sheldon Martin, Friendship Mission Committee Chair

Serving with our committee for Friendship Mission was truly a memorable experience. Friendship Mission is comprised of two homeless shelters, one that serves men and one that serves women and children. The men’s shelter also serves as a public soup kitchen that serves almost 2,000 meals a month to members of the community. The program works to help those in need build a personal plan to self-sufficiency and independent living. Residents are assisted with finding employment, healthcare, and other needs to find permanent housing in the community.

Our committee’s mission was to create a playroom in the women’s shelter for children and teenagers. We were also tasked with sorting hygiene kits and clothing for new members entering the shelter. While living in the shelter, most women and children all live in a single room and the kids do not have a place to call their own. As much of a toll as living in a shelter can bring, this playroom offers the kids somewhere they could spend time and relax and feel like they were not living in a shelter. When some of the families come to Friendship, they do

not always have much more than the clothes on their backs. The hygiene kits were prepared so as they are beginning this new chapter at the shelter, they have the necessities to start over.

The playroom was a particularly fun task. Due to the pandemic, we could not gather in the shelter in the fall to keep residents and our committee safe. But the committee met every other Sunday in the afternoons in the spring to prepare the room. We started by painting each of the two rooms in fun curated blue colors to make the rooms feel bright and inviting. The committee painted portions of the wall in the toddler room in chalk paint so the kids could freely draw and color on the walls. We were able to put together a futon and bean bag chairs for the older kids, as well as a ball pit and play kitchen for younger children. We were able to install two smart TVs in both the toddler room and the older kids’ room so they could be used for learning tools and entertainment. We finished by adding some decorative artwork on the walls to make it feel homier.

After setting up all the new furniture and play areas, the committee reveled in the new space for the kids. This was truly a fun committee to work with, and everyone was motivated to finish this project strong. This group was full of teamwork and the residents were extremely excited about this new area in the shelter.