by ttripp | Apr 8, 2020 | Uncategorized
James and Amy Gandy shared their stories with us to help us understand their passion for helping others. Listening to their tales, Dorri and I wondered how their ministry would spring forth from such hardship. How would two people, once addicted to drugs and...
by ttripp | Mar 25, 2020 | Uncategorized
In our last blog, Dorri and I told Amy’s story. But Amy’s story is not complete without James’s, her now husband. One might ask, why would James keep going back to a woman that appeared so broken. The reason was that James understood broken. He, himself, had been...
by ttripp | Mar 6, 2020 | Uncategorized
When we first entered the building known as the Hands and Feet Foundation, people scrambled about preparing for the day. Bags of donated Panera bagels lined the small hallway; James and Amy would distribute them to the homeless later that day. The house was small; in...
by ttripp | Feb 21, 2020 | Uncategorized
Jared’s faith in God is what ultimately changed the course of his life for the better, he tells Tracy and I, at Hands and Feet Ministries in Jacksonville. The clean-shaven young man with a ponytail says he now feels a calling to the ministry. “In...
by ttripp | Feb 5, 2020 | Uncategorized
We met Joel at Hands and Feet Foundation in Jacksonville. They are one of the faith-based outreach programs helping the homeless. Tracy and I interviewed the couple who run this program and will be posting their interview on the blog soon. Joel, age 67, is an army...
by ttripp | Jan 23, 2020 | Uncategorized
John’s Story Dorri and I met John and Tiffany at Social Grounds. Their features showed characteristics of youth, or at least the youth of people in their twenties. Yet, the years had been hard, and it painted a picture on their faces of two much older people. They had...
by ttripp | Jan 8, 2020 | Uncategorized
Thomas, age 29, looked as relaxed as any college student dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a hoodie. Tracy and I found some seats at a long rectangular table toward the back of the San Marco Library. Amid the hushed conversations and occasional flutters of book pages,...
by ttripp | Dec 18, 2019 | Uncategorized
Synergy: the interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or other agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects. I love this word because it contains magic and possibilities. The definition of synergy makes...
by ttripp | Dec 5, 2019 | Uncategorized
Thom, “the phone man,” age 70, agreed to meet with us and talk about the challenges he faces in being part-time homeless. “The phone man” nickname, as he’s known on the streets, comes from his employment with Assurance, a cellular phone company, specializing in Obama...
by ttripp | Nov 20, 2019 | Uncategorized
Dorri and I stood in front of the Jacksonville Public Library. The streets were bustling with people. Some individuals were hurrying by; others sat with their backs against the library wall, waiting for the doors to open. Immediately, we noticed the homeless presence....
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