“Ok, Margaret is going to sing!” announces Mikal. The room is packed. Popular tunes from the 50s fill the air with upbeat melodies. People take turns coming to the front and singing solos.
An elderly lady smiles and begins singing as Ruby Murray lyrics fill the air.
… Let him go, let him tarry … let him sink or let him swim…
The jubilant tune soon has caregivers and participants swaying, clapping and singing along. One caregiver is stroking her client’s hair as they watch quietly.
“Ok everybody, Margaret is going to be 100 in December,” announces Mikal as the song comes to a close, “Make sure you practice your dancing!”
As people start to pack up their things, she reminds everyone to keep her in their prayers. “I’m going to visit my dad in Eritrea.”
“Yes, her dad isn’t doing too good!” Donna pipes up.
A parade of waving and smiling caregivers and wheelchairs begin to file out the door.
“We love you all! Thank you for coming!”
It was just another Tuesday at noon at the Special Needs Ministry community group. It’s a unique special needs gathering at Centre Street Church as many of the participants were not born with disabilities. Most of them, and even some of the volunteers, led completely typical lives that were disrupted by brain injury. Others, like Margaret, are just simply aging and enjoy the company and warmth.
“The group doesn’t always have to preach about God or have a Bible study,” explains Mikal who founded the program many years ago at the Golden Age Club. It is attended by participants and caregivers that come from a variety of backgrounds and who may or may not believe in Jesus. “We’re just creating a safe space for them to come into the church and be themselves, and we know God’s spirit is in us and working through us and in each of them individually.”
Donna, a volunteer with the group, has witnessed God’s transforming power in this community – and it has changed her life. After a severe asthma attack left her with a brain injury, Donna’s husband left and she moved in to a group home. “I went through really bad depression,” shares Donna. That’s when she started attending the Golden Age Club where the program was originally located before it abruptly shut down. Over the 15 years the program ran at the club, Donna got to know Mikal well and started confiding in her about matters of faith.
“I was raised in the catholic church, but after a while I didn’t feel comfortable in that church any more,” recalls Donna, “I wanted less of a religion and more of a relationship with God.”
“It was perfect timing for God to connect Donna with me because she was having questions about faith and meaning,” adds Mikal. She invited Donna to CSC.
“I just fell in love with the church,” recalls Donna. Before long she was looking for ways to get involved. She started volunteering at Appleseed Bookstore at CS and attending a Bible study with the Special Needs Ministry. It wasn’t long before she was baptized.
“I knew my transformation was real because I was no longer afraid or shy attending the program at the Golden Age Club,” notes Donna. “I’ve come out of my shell. Volunteering is how God started moving in my life.”
For many of the participants, including Donna, the adult day program was the highlight of their week and the abrupt 4-month shut-down of the program at the Golden Age Club was devastating. Mikal worked with leaders of CSC’s Special Needs Ministry and back in 2013 it was agreed that the program could relocate to the church. Mikal approached Donna about starting to volunteer in leadership at the program and Donna agreed.
“The change in Donna’s life really started to happen in how she just wanted to serve,” recalls Mikal. But little did they know that God was just getting started … because He didn’t just have a plan for Donna, but for many other people in the community group as well.
Read more about how God is moving through the lives of those impacted by CSC’s Special Needs community group in Part 3 – God speaks through safe, loving spaces (Coming December 13)