Through IVC’s Virtual Program, Jim Whitney has found a way to use his teaching experience to serve the increasingly vulnerable brothers and sisters in our country’s communities.
“I prayed for guidance and felt confident that the Holy Spirit was pointing me to Pope Francis Center. I feel I’m doing precisely the sort of work Jesus calls us to do, being a servant to others.”
The Pope Francis Center in Detroit offers help and hope to people experiencing homelessness through more than shelter alone. “We envision a Detroit without homelessness, where every person has the resources for sustained stability,” says Adrienne Palumbo, Director of Communications at PFC.
Working toward that mission, PFC operates both a drop-in, zero-bar entry Day Center in downtown Detroit to meet basic needs for anyone seeking support and a transitional housing program, the Bridge Housing Campus.
BHC is an intensive program offering individualized treatment plans to support and empower them to overcome the complex challenges they face. During their short term stay, residents have access to intensive medical, respite, psychological, addiction, social, and job-readiness services, along with housing advocacy and support.
Jim, working at the Bridge Housing Campus is an important part of these wrap around services. He teaches group classes on effective verbal and written communication highlighting how to communicate with different audiences or in different circumstances. And building on those skills Jim conducts personalized sessions to address their specific needs and interests. Some were inspired to seek his advice on starting a small business when they discovered that he taught business courses at a small Vermont college before retiring.
As a teacher, Jim is especially grateful for the chance to help the residents of Pope Francis Center learn and grow, saying “It’s gratifying to hear how they appreciate being encouraged to think and express themselves without judgment and to see how much personal growth, confidence and self-esteem many have gained since they came to Pope Francis Center.”
Since joining the Center Jim has found the sense of community and fellowship among the residents and staff greater than many places and has had “multiple opportunities to share my faith with individual residents in response to their questions.”
Describing his experience as humbling, Jim is sometimes told that he helped residents in ways that went beyond anything he was “consciously trying the accomplish.” He may not think so but when people are in need of so much we can never know when our smallest act makes the biggest difference in their lives.
One such instance began as a tutoring session with an older resident who was having difficulty reading following memory loss resulting from a head injury. As the tutoring sessions progressed it was discovered that he needed not only tutoring but new glasses. Through the Center’s support services he was scheduled for an eye exam and new glasses. “Each time we pass in the hall, he asks about our next session and asks for more ‘home work’ to keep his progress moving,” Jim said.
As so many other non-profit organizations throughout the country PFC services for “the least of these” have become collateral damage as partner organizations have federal funds cut.
While operating costs and demand for services continue to increase, private funding resources are severely limited. Demand for services for daily visitors at the Day Center have gone from 200 to nearly 250 over the last year.
Lack of affordable housing creates significant challenges in finding appropriate dignified permanent sustainable options for PFC guests and residents.
“Having Jim as a part of the PFC team has helped tremendously in our ability to meet our residents where they are, and in helping them to achieve their individual goals. At BHC, we’re working with our residents to achieve their full potential; something that is challenging to do when you don’t have support,” Ms. Palumbo explained. “With Jim’s extensive teaching background coupled with his inherent qualities of compassion, kindness, and patience, he’s been able to give one on one attention to some of our guests that have expressed an interest in obtaining their GEDs and engaging in higher learning opportunities, With our limited staffing resources, having Jim as a member of our team has extended our capacity and helped move BHC residents toward reaching their full potential and transforming their livers for the better.”
