June 2020 Newsletter

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Working From Home At Mission

Chris is a customer service representative at a local information call center. He answers telephone calls from consumers with questions about the products they have purchased. Normal business practice has been for dozens of such employees to be in the same call center in small cubicles close together. However, recent concerns over physical distancing, because of the coronavirus, has caused the center to reduce the number of work stations used on-site. So they had the telephone company route Chris’ incoming calls, through a secure line, to his Transitional Housing Program rental room at the Mission. He kept his job and had physical distancing. Its interesting that when a product service call is made, it could be answered by someone in an old single room occupancy hotel at a homeless shelter, or anywhere else in the world. And its a part of the new normal.

For the past four years, Chris’ private room here has been his home and the call center his job. When he arrived, he had just completed a time of being the live- in caregiver for his parents. He managed their funerals and estate arrangements and was still grieving his loss. During his first few months here, he stayed in our dormitory. Previous experience allowed him to easily get this job. Chris said, “The Mission gave me peace and quiet, a time to gather my thoughts. I know that sounds very simple, but its a very valuable asset.” He said that here it is consistent in how it is run, safer and more secure than other places.

In the photo above, he sports a Navy hat, being a veteran of the first Gulf War era. When his voluntary military service ended, he went back to school. He earned a degree in Environmental Science from an Oregon university. He worked in hazardous waste management for years until a downturn in the economy. Now, his underlying condition of diabetes prevents him from returning to the exposure of dangerous chemicals and possibly the close quarters of the call center.

Beyond the double rescue of home and job, there is another rescue operation underway. Being both a military brat and a serviceman, he is well traveled through the Middle East, seeing many historical Christian sites. He has been able to connect actual locations with Biblical messages told at the Mission. Chris is a Christian. He said messages here have thrown a light on some things and been encouraging.