As we discussed the project via our CYC group chat (Lombard CYC from Chicago ecclesia), many CYC members loved the idea of distributing sleeping bags to charities and individuals in need of them during this winter period. Most loved the idea but couldn’t make it on the designated date to drop off the sleeping bags due to COVID-19 and long distance. We ended up making arrangements for the few that could make it.
One of the elders in our ecclesia got in touch with an organization/charity that helps the homeless. The organization itself is called DuPagePads, located in Wheaton, IL. Their mission is to end homelessness around DuPage County, in Illinois. They also provide simple provisions such as food and temporary needs that homeless individuals might require. To read more about them, click here.
After having received the bags through another elder of the ecclesia, We ended up dropping them on Nov 28. One of the employees at DuPagePads gave us the code for the shed in which we were supposed to drop the sleeping bags as they’ve implemented “contactless drop-off” procedures. That Saturday afternoon, we drove by the location; there were about 8 of us.
We had a tennis ball with us, so we played some catching games with everyone that was around before unloading. It’s always the little games/things like this that sometimes teaches us about each other. Through little things like this, I get to learn about the competitive spirit of other CYC members. You should be able to tell by looking at the photos.
After opening the shed to where the sleeping bags had to go in, we lined up ourselves and started placing the sleeping bags in the shed (as some of the pictures entails) in a line format. It worked a bit like a link chain distribution where we passed the sleeping bags from one person to the next till the last person placed it in the shed. The whole experience was pretty fun and it was such a beautiful way to preach through action.
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!”–Mat 25:40