The tents are pitched - come visit and make a donation for homeless kids

Look for the tents at N 185th and Ashworth Ave N
Bring a donation for homeless kids
Photo courtesy Shoreline Covenant Church

By Pastor Erika Haub

Shoreline Covenant Church

Mom of three kiddos in Shoreline Schools and one three-year old at home :)

One of the joys of life with a three-year old is watching Daniel Tiger. For those of you not familiar with the show, Daniel Tiger is a sort of legacy spin-off of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, a show which shaped my generation. Last week, Hope and I watched an episode where there was a big storm at night and the next morning Daniel was really scared by all the damage and destruction he saw throughout his neighborhood. His mom reassured him, saying something like this: "Daniel, when you experience something scary, find an adult. They will make a plan. And then look around and notice the helpers. Look for those people who are helping."

Any long-time Mr. Roger's fans know this was a hallmark of his show that has been repeated often in recent years as we have faced school shootings and other atrocities in our own backyards. This wisdom Fred Rogers offers us comes from memories of his own childhood: "When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'"

This Friday night, I have pitched a tent in my church parking lot with thirty-seven other women from our community. We are doing this to raise money to help expand housing services for homeless kids in our community through Vision House.

As I prepared to leave my own kids and husband on Friday night, I recalled that Daniel Tiger episode and realized that I am offering them a gift as well. As my kids daily see the faces of desperate people as we we enter and exit the freeway; as they read the signs held up on the edge of the Fred Meyer parking lot; as they encounter stories in their own school of domestic violence shattering families; my kids can remember a bunch of ladies in tents in a parking lot of a church and know that there are grown-ups who are helping. I think that matters.

If you live in the area and want to bring your own kids by for a visit, please do so. I would love to met them and introduce them to a special group of "helpers". Maybe your kids would even want to bring a donation to help: three years ago we had a fourth grader come with her full piggy bank, and she offered us all of the money she had saved! Our event begins at 7pm on the corner of 185th and Ashworth and we will be there all night. We would love to see you. 

Shoreline Covenant Church on the corner of N 185th and Ashworth Ave N.