Busy families are constantly in motion. Parents need to drop kids off at school or day care each morning, then drive to work themselves. In the afternoon, the process reverses. The next day, they do it all over again.
Multiply these transportation needs by three or four families and subtract a few personal vehicles, and you begin to see the logistical complexities that Family Promise encounters as it seeks to provide compassionate hospitality and empower homeless families to achieve sustainable independence.
Drivers for the 15-passenger van are needed early each morning to pick up the guests from the host congregation and take them to the Day House. From there, the children might need rides to different schools, and parents may need a way to get to a driver’s test, a job interview, or a job. Then everyone needs a way to get back to the Day House, where the van driver will pick them up to go back to the host congregation for the night.
As Family Promise of Greater Wichita began serving guests in late November of 2016, transportation needs multiplied quickly.
Jess and Linda Maus, who attend West Ridge Community Church, started driving for the organization in December to fill the desperate need. Since they are both retired—he worked as a firefighter and police officer, she worked for the city of Valley Center—they had the time available.
The couple like to be involved in what their church is doing, and they see their service as an extension of their faith.
“That’s what we are supposed to do,” Linda says. “Help one another.”
Before learning about Family Promise, she says she hadn’t realized that families with children account for 40 percent of the nations’ homeless population, and how existing programs are ill-suited to serve them.
Jess says, “We need to use our talents. There are some things that I can’t do anymore, but I can drive.”
As more people volunteer to drive, Jess and Linda have been able to scale back to a more sustainable schedule, but they are still driving several shifts each week.
Through all of their hours transporting guests from the churches to the Day House, and then back again, or to jobs, school, or elsewhere, Jess and Linda get to know the families well. They easily name off who is at what place in the program, who is working where, and the different schools the kids attend because they have had daily conversations with the guests along the way. When someone passes a driver’s test, or receives a GED, or achieves a goal, they know.
Linda says it has been a joy to talk with one guest who is graduating from the program and planning to sign a lease on her own apartment in the next few days. “She is just beyond excited,” she says.
Jess says, “A lot of charities you do things and you don’t see any results.” His experience driving for Family Promise has been radically different. “We get to celebrate in their successes.”
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Providing transportation is a crucial part of our mission to help families get back on their feet.
You can join us! A variety of shifts are available. Sign up today.
Family Promise of Greater Wichita unites hearts and hands to provide compassionate hospitality and empower homeless families with children to achieve sustainable independence. We are a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
