Witnessing Healing: A Year Long Volunteer Reflection

Our Year Long Volunteers are in the home stretch of their service year. Over these past months, they have dedicated their lives to serving the Christ House community. We’ll be sharing their end of year reflections every Thursday for the next few weeks as they look back on a year of learning, laughs, and challenges.

Evelyn is from Charlotte, North Carolina and is passionate about art and ministry. This past Friday at Volunteer Appreciation Night, Evelyn graced us with a beautiful speech about her Year Long Volunteer experience as the Activities Coordinator. Above she is pictured with some excited patients on a trip to a Georgetown basketball game in March. Thank you, Evelyn, for these lovely words and for your dedicated service this past year.

Witnessing Healing

By Evelyn Walker

My name is Evelyn Walker and tonight I get to share and reflect with you all on what the past 9 months have meant to me. What I’ve noticed about this community since coming to Christ House for the most part, and for me at least, is that we all come here looking for something. Whether it’s purpose or community… it could be anything really. But whatever it is, Christ House has a way of just getting into the deepest part of you and filling you with what you need.

Personally, I came to Christ House to serve. I wanted to serve the Loving God and just get to love people. I wanted a community where those things were important. So, with much prayer and encouragement from Mari Wiles, I made the choice to come here. And for the past year I’ve had the unique opportunity to serve as the Activities Coordinator. What does the Activities Coordinator do, you might be wondering? What I usually tell the patients is that I plan the fun stuff. Every day I get to come in and hang out with the guys and just have fun with them. I get to plan opportunities for them to smile, get a chance to feel normal, and maybe even put down what might be worrying them–even if only for a moment.

And all those moments add up. And all those moments have impacted me the most, especially when I got to witness the moments where the patients experienced firsts–first time having a marshmallow…first time being in an arena of people at a basketball game…first time cooking or baking…first time playing the Wii…first time going to Starbucks…first art class. It’s the little things. And when you witness healing, you really are never the same. And every day I found myself walking out just like the patients–a little more healed. Healed from judgments and prejudices and –isms I didn’t know I had.

Wherever I go, I will treasure these lessons, these moments. And to close, I just want to say thank you. Thank you to everyone here for creating such a wonderful community. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of Christ House’s legacy of love and hope.