Houses for Healing: providing opportunities for Church Involvement in caring for the sick who are in town for health care.
(Information below was provided by Brian Massey, Director of Houses for Healing)
Volunteer
Opportunities
P.O. Box 2320
Abilene, Texas 79604
(325) 660-7719
“Encouraging the Kingdom of God to provide shelter, food, transportation, love and support for people with medical challenges who come to Abilene for treatment.”
The mission statement for Houses for Healing follows Jesus description of Christian service found in Matthew 25:35-36 and 40: “35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ …‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[f] you did it to me.’” We also subscribe to Jesus’ prayer for unity in John 17:23b “May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.”
Let’s see how this works …
Many people come to Abilene from the counties all around us for medical treatment. They find free lodging at www.housesforhealing.com. They can just click on “Apply” complete and return the application. Houses for Healing staff will process the applications and work with the adopting church to make sure the guest is a match for our ministry. The application info will be passed to the Church Team Leaders so they can disseminate the information to the team members. Please see Guest Process below.
Volunteer Opportunities
There is an assortment of opportunities to volunteer/serve at Houses for Healing. Each Church has a Person (or persons) who serves as the Point of Contact. These leaders are often referred to as House Leaders, House Parents, Team Leaders, Volunteer Coordinator, etc. They coordinate volunteer involvement communicating to the team of volunteers to ensure each task is accomplished. Following is a description of the Volunteer teams and tasks:
Welcome Team (“Team Leaders”, “House Parents”)
These volunteers will greet the incoming guests, introducing them to the tiny house and how to “work” the amenities such as heating and air conditioning, stove, alarm, tv, etc. The Welcome Team can present a Bible to the guest with the guest’s name imprinted and pray for them. The Welcome Team also performs an intake assessment where they learn about the guest’s food preferences, any allergies, details of treatments/medical needs/transportation needs/food needs/etc. This information is passed on to the appropriate volunteers.
Gift Bible Team
Volunteers on this team receive the guest’s name, procure a Holy Bible, and have the guest’s name embossed on it. They can either deliver it and present the Bible themselves, present it while accompanying the “House Parents”, or simply give it to the “House Parents” to be presented.
Home Church/Community Team
These volunteers serve to communicate with the guest’s home church and community. The home church welcomes the opportunity to help their church member with care for their home and staying informed so they can be praying for the patient. Quite often, they can keep the grass mowed, mail picked up, pets cared for, property watched and even assist in financial needs.
Meals Team
Most of our guests like to prepare their own meals, but may need help procuring the groceries. Some food is now available in the Chapel to supply their cupboard and refrigerator, but help may be needed to shop for food and supplies. Volunteers can also cook or pick something up for our guest’s meals. Using information provided from the House Parents, we either cook or pick something up based on preferences/allergies and convenience. When we take the food to the guests, we fellowship with them and pray with them.
Transportation Team
Sometimes, the guests prefer to provide their own transportation. But quite often, transportation is needed to take the guests to and from their appointments for treatments such as radiation. The volunteer communicates about the treatment schedule and makes sure contact information has been exchanged. Some of our clients receive chemo treatments, which can take hours. So, communication is essential. The transportation volunteer also keeps the Team Leader informed about the transportation services needed or not needed for the guest. Transportation may be needed for other purposes such as helping the guest with shopping for supplies, trips to the bank or Post Office, etc. Time spent with the guests is precious, giving this volunteer more time and opportunity to get to know and love each other.
Prayer Team
These team members may simply pray for the guests each day they are with us. They may also visit the guests and pray with them if permitted. One Prayer team member will also make sure our Hillcrest prayer committee has the name and medical needs of our guest so they can be praying for them. Prayers for the guest’s home church and community are also appropriate and desired.
Visiting Team
This team will also periodically drop by to visit, making sure there are no issues/needs while getting updates on their condition and reporting back to the other volunteers. This team, like the others may want to also participate in bringing meals and/or providing transportation if the LORD leads them to do so.
Maintenance Team
The maintenance team will not be very busy initially as the tiny houses are new. Some tasks that will arise over time are lightbulbs, leaking faucets, clogged garbage disposal and other minor issues. Periodically, a paint touch-up or house repair from an accident might arise. These team members may also be asked to help (or get help) with WIFI connectivity as guests might struggle a little with technology.
Cleaning Team
Our Cleaning Team is led by the volunteers of the church who want to make sure the tiny house looks good and smells good. There is not a lot of effort required to clean the tiny house. Mainly, we want to check the condition of the house through the duration of the stay and then perform a deep clean upon checkout and before the next guest arrives. Volunteers from other churches are welcome to join in and work alongside for weekly checks with our guests to see what cleaning needs to be done. Deep cleaning will be done between guests when the tiny house is empty. Cleaning team members should also help us check inventory and shop for cleaning supplies. Laundry is considered part of the cleaning efforts. So, extra bed linens in the tiny house are helpful.
Pest control is performed by Houses for Healing monthly.