"In the Shadow of The Cross" . . .
February 2010 03/02/2010
 John and Puck Puck..... Dennis came to our food line behind the Cathedral back sometime before the 9/11 attacks. I never really knew his name because, as he walked up for the first time his big smile revealed he was missing all his front teeth. Before he could speak I jokingly asked "Do you happen to play Hockey"? He looked a bit confused so I pointed to his mouth. He began to laugh and I stuck out my hand and said "Nice to meet you Puck". He shook my hand and answered "I've been looking for an appropriate nickname. I like that one." From then on, Puck was his street name. He would often help sweep up the alley after we finished handing out food. Sometimes working on the streets you wonder if you have an impact on those you befriend. Or if they simply move on and you disappear from their memory. Last week while feeding our Wednesday evening crowd, I heard a somewhat familiar voice call out "Swanger, you old fart!" I looked around and heard "It's me! Dennis"! Then he opened his mouth to reveal a mouth full of perfectly straight teeth and said "You probably don't recognize me with teeth.... It's Puck!" I said "More so I didn't recognize the name . . . Dennis." He said he let the nickname go away in 2008 when he got the new teeth. Then the conversation took off like we had never parted. He found a dentist who fixed his teeth for free then found a job and got off the streets about a year ago. He said he still doesn't make enough to make ends meet but he's thankful anyway. I love my job. We are adding Wednesday morning to our sack lunch program. If you are looking for an opportunity to volunteer please let us know. We will be needing about 3 volunteers from 8:30am - 10:00am every Wednesday. We are also looking for four families/home churches/youth groups. . . etc to volunteer to make about 60-80 sack lunches once a month on Tuesday nights and bring them the following morning. We will need 4 such groups. Again if interested, let us know. Thank you all for your prayers. Your compassion is changing lives. You are bringing hope to a lost and lonely world. Please remember, you're not just feeding people, you're giving them Jesus. John & Raylene 303- 594-7729 Post Office Box 1653 Eastlake Colorado 80614-1653 E-Mail john@tollgate.org Cross & Clef is a 501(c)3) organization & a Colorado Nonprofit Corporation. All donations are tax deducible CommentsLeave a Reply | The
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