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Igniting Hope

July 10, 2017

The Fourth of July holiday was marked with many celebrations amongst friends and family. Some grilled out. Some watched fireworks. Others like Arthur Abraham and his fellow Connect Transit coworkers provided a catered meal for those at Home Sweet Home Ministries.

“We all donated and put this on together,” says Arthur. “We could have just sat at home and enjoyed ourselves, but we just wanted to bring the joy to somebody else this time.”

A line of servers dished up pulled pork sandwiches, potato salad, baked beans, and snow cones. The meal even featured a special demonstration by Walker Taekwondo.

Arthur’s inspiration to give back was sparked by a simple thank you. “I was driving in downtown Bloomington and I saw a homeless guy just sitting there, hungry,” shares Arthur. “I brought him something to eat. He said thank you, and that really touched me. It made me think ‘Why can’t I feed everybody?’ I know I can’t feed the world, but this is a start.”

This act of kindness runs deep for Arthur, because he too once needed a helping hand.

“It touches me because I’ve been homeless. I slept in abandoned buildings. The only meal I had was when I went to school. I didn’t let that hold me down, I just kept going,” explains Arthur. “Everyone has a problem in life that they try to overcome. Some of them make it; some of them don’t. I just don’t want to sit there and look at everybody like I’m better than them. Until you’ve been down this road, it’s hard to understand it. I’ve been there and I understand it. One day, they could be the ones standing here saving my life.”

Arthur says it feels terrific to host a meal and looks forward to giving back even more. “I love it. Everybody here has a big heart.”

From all of us at Home Sweet Home, thank you Arthur and fellow Connect Transit coworkers for putting on such a lovely picnic for our residents. Your support truly sparked hope in others.


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Be joyful in HOPE, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayerRomans 12:12