Getting Deep in Deep Ellum

This weekend a coworker and I took 27 kids on our yearly trip to Dallas for the Texas FCCLA State Conference. Our days were jam-packed with excitement and events. One particular evening we had some free time so my coworker and I decided to plan a downtown ice cream adventure.

We checked our GPS and pulled up every ice cream place within walking distance from our hotel. We settled on a location about .7 miles away in Deep Ellum that looked promising. We figured walking downtown would be a new experience for these kids, but we had no idea what was soon to come.

On the walk to Deep Ellum from the Sheraton, we passed several homeless people sitting on the side of the street. Most students walked on by without noticing them, some walked faster because they were afraid and some smiled and said hello.

As an Austinite, seeing and interacting with homeless people is a part of daily life, but the students' mixed reactions were perspective changing. I realized many of my students had never been exposed to homelessness and this was a brand new experience for a lot of them! We get our ice cream and a student comes up to me, clearly feeling some type of way, and says, "Miss Coolidge. I have to give that man across the street money. I just HAVE to."

I was hesitant to let her go alone but didn't want to discourage her from something she felt so led to do, so I agreed to walk over with her so she could donate the money she had.

As we walked across the street, I explained that no matter what happens when we approach him, that he is a real human with real feelings. I stressed the importance of asking him his name and using it. I wanted her to understand that no matter what decisions this man made to end up this way, he was still worthy of being acknowledged and respected.

We met him, introduced ourselves and found out his name was David. We spent some time talking and learning more about his life. He choked up as he talked about his past and how he ended up on the street. He went on to explain that he spent every dime he had to his name to lay his mother to rest and couldn't afford to make it back home to Cleveland. He was even carrying her urn to he could spread her ashes in their hometown.

In that moment I couldn't help it. Even though I wasn't sure if it was appropriate for me as a teacher to do, I asked him if I could pray over him. He agreed. I took his hands and just prayed. I have no idea what I was saying, or if it even made sense... All I knew is that whatever words he needed to hear, God would give me. When I was finished, he hung his head, cried and said thank you. We walked back to the ice cream shop and the girl joined her friends at a picnic table. She shared the experience we had with David, and her friends felt led to donate their spare change too! Before I knew what was happening, the group of girls began going around and collecting money from all of the students I brought on this trip.

When I noticed what was happening, I was quick to stress the importance of keeping their money. I know that as middle schoolers they aren't exactly the best at saving money and I knew we still had a few meals left they'd need money for.

Even after my announcement, the money kept flooding in for our new friend David. Some students even donated as much as $20. My heart couldn't handle it, I promise you that. It melted into a puddle at my feet! They ended up gathering almost $50 dollars! We walked back across the street to give him the money. A student explained how deeply we were touched by his story and that we wanted to help him get back to Cleveland.

This man literally broke down sobbing right in front of us. He had no words. I told him he was loved and not alone.. he replied, "You know, for the first time in a long time I believe that." The amount of generosity and compassion these kids had for a man down on his luck gives me the chills. Truly.

We began the night knowing we'd get a sweet treat and ended it by blessing someone else with a "sweet treat."

It's moments like this that I feel so unbelievably blessed to get to lead these kids through experiences like this! It catches me off guard when I see middle schoolers getting involved in making someone else's life a little easier. Especially to the extent I saw this weekend.

One thing is for sure, I can take no credit for this.

All glory to God for equipping me with the leadership and compassion to lead these kids in love!