PLEASE JOIN US FOR A VERY GRATIFYING EXPERIENCE

Cathedral will again be welcoming the homeless of the community into the Fleming Center every Tuesday, beginning November 2007 and continuing through March, 2008.  As many of you know, the program involves receiving approximately 30 guests per week for an overnight stay, including a hot dinner meal, breakfast in the morning, and a sack lunch to take away.

Volunteers are needed for the following:

Meals:  Dinner is planned each week to serve 60 people.  Our guests come hungry!  Breakfast and lunches are prepared for 30 individuals.  If you or a group of you can provide dinner, sack lunches or breakfast, please email Colleen McPherson at colleenmcpherson@comcast.net.

Transportation:  Drivers are needed to pick up the men at the Campus for Human Development on 8^th Ave. South and bring them to the Fleming Center on Tuesday evenings and to return them to the Campus early Wednesday mornings.  Drivers depart from the Fleming Center in a group at 6:30 Tuesday nights, and are needed at 5:45 on Wednesday mornings.  Please call Erik Herbert at 403-6348.

Laundry:  Each Wednesday morning, sheets and towels need to be picked up from Cathedral, washed, folded and returned by the following Tuesday afternoon.  If you can do this on a weekly basis, or even a few times over the season, please email Jenny Clough at jennyclough@comcast.net.

Innkeepers:  Two men per week are needed to stay overnight with our guests.  Please contact Michael Barrett at 293-5550 to help.

Hospitality:  Everyone is welcome to come by on Tuesdays beginning at 6:00 p.m. to help make beds, serve dinner and visit with our guests.  This evening winds down by 8:00, and our guests really appreciate seeing you.

Room In the Inn is beginning its twenty-first year of serving and lending a helping hand to the homeless population of Nashville. Father Charles Strobel initiated the program with four churches in 1986. The Cathedral of the Incarnation has been participating since the program began and is proud to continue it with over 147 other Nashville churches this year! Many programs have been added to the downtown campus, the Campus for Human Development, including Alcohol and Narcotics Anonymous meetings, showers, primary health care, job counseling, clothing, basic education (including GED courses), and support for mental health services. Local churches continue to provide critical shelter and meals during the winter months.

For those of you who wonder if one person can make a difference in the lives of the homeless, take a look at the cumulative volunteer statistics for The Room In The Inn 2004-2005.

• 28,560 Bed Spaces Provided
• 113,056 Volunteer Hours
• 69,324 Meals
• 21,125 Snacks
• 12,799 Showers

If services provided by Room In The Inn during one winter had been purchased, they would have cost about one million dollars.

As usual, our parishioners have been generous with their time and money to help our guests. The Room In the Inn program at the Cathedral is always looking for volunteers to serve as overnight Innkeepers, providers for dinners, breakfasts and lunches as well as people to help with transportation and laundry. If you are interested sharing your talents and services, please contact Colleen McPherson at (615) 269-4436.

Contributions
Donations can be made to assist the Room In the Inn program. Checks should be made payable to the Cathedral of the Incarnation. Please specify that your donation is for the Room In the Inn program and deliver it to the Cathedral office or place it in the collection basket.