Service, “the Young Ones” and Ms. Delores

 

By Mandy Haffer, Alumni Summer Staff

 

I could write for days about all the Lord has taught me during my two YouthWorks summers spent as a work projects staff in Raleigh County, West Virginia and Eastern Shore, Virginia. These two beautiful places never run out of stories to share. But my favorite story will forever be one of Ms. Delores. It is the story of a bitter heart in small-town West Virginia being softened by the love of Christ incarnated through one of our groups from halfway across the country.

 

Thinking back to meeting Ms. Delores two summers ago, it’s hard to know where to begin. Ms. Delores is one of those people who has just been burned a lot. In her life, many people abandoned her, hurt her or passed away way too soon. At eighty-some years young, Ms. Delores had no family around, nor did she have any close friends. A woman who came over and helped her out around the house a couple times a week was really the only friend she had.

 

 

Ms. Delores was the very first homeowner I met with during my first YouthWorks summer. I was definitely riding the learning curve and trying to figure out what exactly my job was, so needless to say, I was a little nervous to ring her doorbell. As always, the Lord knew what He was doing. Sure, Ms. Delores needed a new coat of paint on her front porch, her swing and her back deck. She needed her windows sealed. She needed some cleaning done inside. But what she really needed was someone to just listen to her. She needed someone to show her the love she hadn’t seen or felt in a long time. Ms. Delores talked and talked, and all I could do was listen.

 

She was looking forward to having some work done on her home, but she was apprehensive to say the least. Not only scared to let people in emotionally, she didn’t really have the best image of youth. I explained to her what YouthWorks was all about and that students would be coming to serve her, and she told me firmly that she didn’t want any of the “young ones.” I did my best to send our youngest students to other homes that week. But you can imagine the look on her face when about a dozen people showed up to her house, the youngest of the group being a very, very energetic sixth grader. “I told you not to bring the young ones!” she told me as the crew waited on the edge of her lawn. “These aren’t the young ones!” I told her. “They are so great; you will love them, Ms. Delores!”

 

And she did.

 

 

The crew entered her home so humbly, and made sure to always ask – never assume. They were very careful with the language they used, and took time to just sit and listen – to learn her story. Sure we had some bumps in the road—namely letting our bumbling sixth grader get his hands on green, oil-based paint and run around the backyard covered in it – but the end of the week came, and she was not ready for them to leave. That crew loved Ms. Delores.

 

That first week in Beckley, West Virginia, I got to witness Ms. Delores’s heart soften upon seeing the love of Christ through some crazy teenagers and adult leaders. I saw her tear up as they had to say good bye. I also got to witness the youth (and adults!) learn a good lesson about how loving the people Christ has called us to serve isn’t always easy – but it is always good.