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Beloved_wretch
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Name: Aimee
Birthday: 10/7/1979
Interests: reading. praying, believing God's Word and relying on His promises. surrendering, again. walking by faith and not by sight.
Message: message meEmail: email me
Member Since:
10/11/2004
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| Today I started watching some of the Space Ghost Coast to Coast Volume 1 DVD set that I got. It has 2 dvds. It's quite amusing, except for 2 interviews. The premise of the show is basically The Late Show with Space Ghost, also with Brak, Moltar and Zorak. The interview with Julie Tenuta made me want to strangle her and the interview with Bob Denver was just sad. Some people should never get old. But, I'm only part way through the 2 dvds and I'm counting on interview with other annoying, aggravating and just plan pathetic celeberities. 
I also, finally, bought and began reading Blue Like Jazz. Thanks to all those who reccomended it. It's one of those books that everyone keep telling you is great, and when you finally decide to go ahead and read it you want to write to the author and tell him you are grateful that it was written.
Getting closer to Christ, serving with more than my time, and seeing in 20/20 vision thanks to Lasik eye surgery performed 4 days ago, this is Aimee signing off. | | |
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Courier Post, June 4, 2006
Section: B
Page: 5B
Cherry Hill church reaches out with Popsicles and pizza
Courier-Post
Volunteers spend Saturdays with North Camden residents to connect, save souls |
| It's Saturday afternoon in North Camden, perhaps the poorest neighborhood in what is surely one of the poorest cities in America.
Sweet-faced children play on sidewalks, streets and in empty spaces where houses, stores and factories used to stand. Hip-hop, salsa and reggae erupt from open windows and seemingly every vehicle that roars up and down the disintegrating streets.
A truck and a bunch of cars pull up to Sixth and York. A dozen people -- most of them white, middle-class suburbanites -- get out and begin their rounds.
Every Saturday, volunteers from the River of Life Worship Center in Cherry Hill bring Popsicles, pizza or other conversation-starting treats, hoping to make friends, offer help and maybe save souls.
"We believe we spread the gospel simply by showing people what it means to be Christian," says James Post, the 25-year-old executive director of River of Life's Dream Center program. "Jesus said, "They will know you're my disciples by your love.'
"Faith expressed by love -- that's what really matters," adds Post, who grew up in Moorestown and now lives in Camden. "We come to show the tangible expression of love."
For the Dream Center crew, tangible means emergency food and utilities assistance, furniture and back-to-school clothes for the kids. But they don't just shower gifts; they seek to make friends, not clients.
"There's no "us' and "them,' " the boyish, charismatic Post declares. "We become a part of the community. We recognize that no matter what challenges a person may be facing, we're all on life's journey. We all need to be in this thing together."
River of Life is a nondenominational, evangelical church. It's been doing outreach on nine blocks in North Camden for two and a half years.
As I follow its teams through the crazy quilt of North Camden -- hollowed-out houses next to freshly painted homes, garbage-laden lots across from glorious rose gardens -- it's clear the Dream Center folks don't just talk the talk.
"Because our team members go back to the same blocks week after week, over time relationships begin to develop," Post says.
Consider Birdie Shepard, an amazingly youthful octogenarian who's lived on the forlorn 500 block of Grant Street for 40 years.
She's visited every Saturday by Denise Wentzel, 19, of Mount Laurel, and Jason Sink, 35, of Haddon Township.
"They are wonderful, if you put it in one word," says Shepard, a retired retail worker. "They're kind-hearted and lovable. They try to help people, and they try not to forget anyone. I look for them every Saturday. I stand at the door."
On the 700 block of Erie Street, 10-year-old Isaias Jimenez waits for his friend Daniel Hornickel every Saturday, too.
"He's fun," Jimenez says, as Hornickel, a 33-year-old human-resources professional from Mount Laurel, dribbles a basketball with him on the sidewalk.
"Tell him your nickname," Hornickel says.
"I don't like it!" Jimenez protests, adding, "I count on him being here."
No question, a few folks in North Camden are hostile to the volunteers.
"I've had one or two incidents -- people coming up to me and asking me what I'm doing, saying, "Get out of here white boy,' " says Sink, who notes that many of the white people who come to North Camden do so in search of drugs.
Generally, however, people in the neighborhood "see the volunteers helping out the kids, and they like that," says Juan Rivera, a 25-year-old mechanic who has lived in North Camden for eight years.
"When we first started coming out here, everybody thought we were crazy," says Dennis Yates, a 36-year-old graphics-company worker from Berlin Township. "But the next week, we had some of the "street pharmacists' out here helping us clean up."
The volunteers say they've learned a lot during their sojourns in North Camden.
The neighborhood is beset by "multifaceted problems," Post says. "You can't just say, "if education was great,' or "if they'd pave the street,' or "if crime was less,' the problems would be solved. That's why we take a holistic approach."
Thirty-year-old Victor Barton, a business consultant who lives in Merchantville, has been active with the Dream Center for three months.
"There's a lot of work to do, but it's one step at a time," he says. "Some of these kids over here don't realize there's more to life than Camden."
Says Maravi Melendez, a 30-year-old Realtor from Mount Laurel, "The people here are no different than I was growing up. The kids have really been amazing."
Post knocks on a door in the 500 block of Grant Street, and Anthony Tirado answers.
"He's everything that a best friend can be," Tirado says of Post. "He's been there for the hardest times in my family. Every time that we need him, he's there."
I catch up with Deborah and Mandy Farrell, a mother and daughter from Cherry Hill.
"Right after I got involved with the church, I asked, "What's this Camden thing about?' " Deborah says. "The only time I ever came to Camden was for a concert, and I wondered how I would be.
"I am so comfortable I can't believe it. I find the people very warm and accepting," she says.
Says Mandy, who's 18 and plans to study for the ministry, "It's not what I expected."
Her mother agrees.
"I could be one of these people here, struggling. There's drug dealers on the street, but we offer them a Popsicle, too, and hopefully win some souls.
"We're blessed by being here. We really are," Deborah says. "In more ways than I can really explain."
Says Wentzel, "My heart is here."
Reach Kevin Riordan at (856) 486-2604 or kriordan@courierpost- online.com
MORE INFORMATION
The River of Life Worship Center is at 1110 Cornell Ave., Cherry Hill. Call (856) 488-8820 or visit www.rolwc.org
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Copyright (c) Courier-Post. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of Gannett Co., Inc. by NewsBank, inc.
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My heart is actually whistling on the way to work each morning. I now have a 20-minute drive to my new job as a county child protection caseworker. And as they say at McDonalds, "I'm lovin it." There were 7 of us hired at the same time. They hire us in groups. The first month or so of our job consists of shadowing other workers, ie. going with them to place a child or children, doing a routine home visit, transporting a child to a psych. eval., etc., and helping them get caught up on some of their paperwork. Now, this might sound boring to you, but thats because it is. Boring is okay right now. In fact, my training unit and I all agree that boring is great. But its not always boring, which is great too. Today many people took off. It is the day after Easter, so with not too many people going out to see clients, 2 co-workers and I sat in the kitchen for 4 hours (with a lunch in between) waiting for a worker going 'out in the field' to take us along with them. It was pretty dull, but after a while I didn't feel like doing much anyway, so my boredom turned to relief. To make a long story short, I got to leave work at 4:00 today. I got to watch 1/2 hour of Oprah (what was up with her hair today?) and a full hour of Dr. Phil.
In closing, ladies and gentelman of Xangaland, my God has been blessing me financially, and occupationally. Why is it so hard to believe He will bless me personally?
We start training May 8th and we have training 3 days a week from then on until the end of July. I'm looking forward to getting some training under my belt and I'm sure the trainings will be somewhat interesting. Although trainings, while informing, are also very boring to me and usually cause me to take a snooze. I'm gonna pray I don't find myself bored to death.
P.S. I watched Damn Yankees yesterday. It was great. | | |
| New Red and Blue Rings Found Around Uranus. 
I'm so immature. | | |
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I am no longer employed by x, social service agency. My new job starts Monday. I'll let you know my first impression, I promise. | | |
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