I have a lot of memories of this place.
When I was a teenager, my family worked at a homeless shelter called Messiah's Branch. It was a grimy, old bar that had been renovated by Dan and Linda Catlin.
My 16th birthday was memorable, to say the least. We were, and still are, family to the Catlins.
Pastor Dan bought me flowers and a candle, Sister Linda made me a cake, their daughter, Bootsie, gave me candy, and their 14 year old son, Bubba, crooned the song Sweet Pea to me.
Oh... and you can't forget the homeless people. It was a rousing chorus of the Happy Birthday song, let me tell you. I didn't accept their offers of free hugs though. ahem... (and no, it wasn't because of the smell)
Things weren't quite so sweet and friendly when we first showed up to work at the shelter though...
When I was a teenager, my family worked at a homeless shelter called Messiah's Branch. It was a grimy, old bar that had been renovated by Dan and Linda Catlin.
My 16th birthday was memorable, to say the least. We were, and still are, family to the Catlins.
Pastor Dan bought me flowers and a candle, Sister Linda made me a cake, their daughter, Bootsie, gave me candy, and their 14 year old son, Bubba, crooned the song Sweet Pea to me.
Oh... and you can't forget the homeless people. It was a rousing chorus of the Happy Birthday song, let me tell you. I didn't accept their offers of free hugs though. ahem... (and no, it wasn't because of the smell)
Things weren't quite so sweet and friendly when we first showed up to work at the shelter though...