Dear Inner Circle,
Every now and then, for privacy’s sake, I have to haul a stack of boxes away to be securely disposed of. The first time I did this, I was carelessly carrying a few too many across the floor when the top box toppled over and the lid flew off. Inside were hundreds of files: each one someone’s life.
Among the strewn papers were letters sent to family, all marked a little too boldly with an RTS stamp. It taught me that this was more than just a task; it was an act of loving memory. A way to simultaneously honour the lives contained in those pages and the thousands of hours of love and care poured into them by our teams and volunteers.
History loves a hero but often forgets the power that communities have always held in our collective health. That love and gratitude extends to you too, our Inner Circle.
How I would love to do anything other than dispose of these files. Yet doing more with them would betray their trust in us, and the respect and dignity in which they were held here. That spilled box made me stop and honour the lives those files represent. How often, in our rush, do we miss the gold lying right in front of us?
Last week we held one of the most heart-rending and beautiful funerals for someone who predates us all now at Wayside. To call him a visitor would be an injustice; he was our host, the one who welcomed us all into this place. Born in Berlin in 1941, he led a life of unfathomable suffering and yet still had room for love, albeit in a very different way. One story shared at his memorial was of a time he yelled at a friend who was offering him a coffee and some cigarettes. As someone leapt to defend her, she assured him, “Don’t worry, he’s a mate.” To which her would-be protector responded, “You need some better mates!” She just smiled, because she knew a mate is someone you don’t get to fire, no matter how hard they sometimes try.
It is our winter appeal, and the truth is that every one of those files, every funeral, every mate you-don’t-get-to-fire, exists because a community chose to hold a life that others had let fall. That is the work the colder months ask of us most urgently. If you haven’t yet decided where to give, please consider us. I know a bunch of people like my friend from Berlin, and many more we haven’t yet met, who could use the kindness of strangers.
Thank you for being part of the Inner Circle,
Jon
Rev. Jon Owen
CEO & Pastor
Wayside Chapel
