Tomorrow is the Big Day!!! The 33rd Annual Salvation Army Bed & Bread Club Radiothon will be on the air LIVE on AM 760 WJR from 6am to 7pm. This is THE ONLY yearly fundraiser for this vital program that provides 1.3 MILLION MEALS and 118,000 NIGHTS OF SHELTER to Metro Detroiters EVERY YEAR! One of the most gratifying parts of working with the Salvation Army on the Bed & Bread program is the opportunity to ride along on one of the three Bed & Bread trucks - which I did once again this past Monday. Everyday - 365 days a year - these trucks make their way through the streets of Detroit - bringing food - and hope - to thousands of Men, Women and Children who have fallen - often through no fault of their own - on hard times. As many rides as I’ve made on the Truck, the reactions of the people it serves never cease to amaze me. They are, almost to a person, filled with thanks and gratitude for the meal they’re given. Hot soup - and I mean REALLY GOOD hot soup, fresh sandwiches, fruit, a cookie… some hot chocolate, coffee or juice... It’s balanced, nutritious - and of course, FREE, as are the “Hygiene Packets”, Blankets & Socks handed out at every stop. Everything is prepared with care and given with love to these people who spend their days - literally - just trying to survive. The Salvation Army’s Bed & Bread Program is designed to make sure they see lots of tomorrows. In addition to the thousands of meals they serve… the Program shelters about 300 people every night. I always ask the people who come up to the window how they’re doing. Remarkably, most of them say “Not bad!” or “Pretty good. How about you?” WOW. And the people who come up to the Truck don’t all suffer from addiction issues like some people think. The stories I’ve heard from women who suffered horrific abuse, and from kids who were mistreated and neglected would make your head spin and your heart break at the same time. And I’ve talked to many people who are there simply because they were laid off or lost their job. Whatever their story… The Salvation Army Bed & Bread Program is there for them. Food - Shelter - Counseling Services - Job Training… You name it. From the things needed just for today - a hot meal and a warm place - to the things that can literally help turn someone’s life around - That’s what this program is all about. I started the Radiothon and created Detroit’s Bed & Bread Club 33 years ago. The first year we raised $15,000 and were over the moon. Now in it’s 33rd year, the program has raised a total of 36 MILLION DOLLARS to serve our fellow Detroiters. Every day. Every night. 365 Days a year. I know from the years and years we’ve been doing the Radiothon that my listeners - and the people of Metro Detroit - have incredibly big and generous hearts. I’m asking you - from the bottom of MY heart - to join me in supporting this program and the people it serves - by donating what you can. Donating $240 or more (That’s only $20 a month!) gets you in the Bed & Bread Club - plus a commemorative Salvation Army Neck Warmer. But I appreciate ANYTHING you can give! The 24 hour Radiothon begins at 7pm tonight and runs all day tomorrow until 7pm. It will be broadcast LIVE on AM 760 WJR and streamed on WJR.com. I’ll be hosting the 4pm to 7pm slot with Jackie and Big Al! You can even donate right now by calling 1-800-Sal Mich or going to Salmich.org. And we’d love to see you at the broadcast LIVE from 1 Campus Martius on Woodward Ave. in downtown Detroit. I can’t tell you what you - and this Program - mean to me. I’m forever in your debt… Thanks so much! -Dick
Each person also receives a “Hygiene Packet” with each meal
*****************
*****************
On Monday, I once again had the privilege of riding on one of the Bed and Bread trucks. There are 3 trucks in all… each one traveling the neighborhood streets of Detroit, day in and day out… 365 days a year. These specially outfitted trucks and the very special people who man them - bring warm food, hot cups of coffee and cocoa, mittens, blankets… whatever’s needed and whatever they have, really, to the thousands of men, women and children living on the streets. As always, our driver Ray honked the Trucks horn, signaling our arrival - and an amazing thing happened.
Men and women… Black… White… Brown… emerged from from buildings and around corners. Some walked alone. Others held the hands of small children. Teenagers walked with a fake air of confidence, the way teenagers are meant to walk.
If you didn’t look closely, it would be easy to miss the
For the next 20 minutes or so… we were busy. Handing out turkey sandwiches… steaming styrofoam cups of soup (we had Bean soup that day), Chips… even fruit (although not everyone took the apples we offered. As one man told me, “You can’t eat an apple if you don’t have teeth!).
I have ridden the Bed & Bread truck many times since our first Radiothon back in 1987 and have always been humbled and awestruck by the experience. by the genuine smiles of the people who come for what might very well be the only meal they get that day. Here they are… living on the streets, facing daily - most likely hourly - challenges that you and I can’t even imagine. yet no matter how red their cheeks from the cold, no matter how sad their eyes, to a person - they smile and thank those of us working the the truck for a hot meal. Talk about humbling.
I wished we could linger at each stop to talk more. To find out their stories. The man with the fingerless gloves. The woman who reached up to try and fix her hair as if embarrassed about the way it looked. The 10ish boy who asked for an extra sandwich for his brother who wasn’t feeling well.
How did they get here? How did they end up IN LINE at the truck, instead of working inside it?
I’ve heard my share of people say “They made their bed…” over the years. I’m sure you know someone like that - maybe you’ve even thought it yourself from time to time. Before my work with the Salvation Army, I may have thought that too.
But I have learned that it is far more complicated than that. The stories behind the wrinkles, the chapped lips, the tired eyes vary, of course, from person to person but they speak to a life filled with things most of us can barely comprehend: Neglect… Abuse… Mental health issues…
No one - NO ONE - would choose to live this way. And if you don’t believe me, think about this. Have you ever heard a child say, “When I grow up… I want to live on the streets and eat food from a truck!”
Me either. (Although my parents certainly thought that would happen when I told them I wanted to be a disc jockey!)
Life happens… and it happens differently for all of us.
I believe one of the most important things we can do with the time we’re given is to help those less fortunate than ourselves. Those whose stories are different from our own. And by making their lives better - we make life better for all of us. The Salvation Army Bed and Bread program - the hot meals, the nights of shelter - are a simple and incredibly effective way for us to do that.
So I ask you to donate what you can. Five dollars… or Ten… or Twenty a month.
I promise… Just like the people in line for the Truck - when they get that soup and sandwich, you’ll have a smile on your face too.
-Dick
FIRST DRAFT:
On Monday, I once again had the privilege of riding on one of the Bed and Bread trucks. There are 3 trucks in all… each one traveling the neighborhood streets of Detroit, day in and day out… 365 days a year. These specially outfitted trucks and the very special people who man them - bring warm food, hot cups of coffee and cocoa, mittens, blankets… whatever’s needed and whatever they have, really, to the thousands of men, women and children living on the streets. As always, our driver Ray honked the Trucks horn, signaling our arrival - and an amazing thing happened.
Men and women… Black… White… Brown… emerged from decaying buildings that just moments before I would have described as unihabitible. Some of them had children in tow. Kids of all ages - from teens to toddlers - all headed towards one thing: The Truck.
For the next 20 minutes or so… we were busy. Handing out turkey sandwiches… steaming styrofoam cups of soup (we had Bean soup that day), Chips… even fruit (although not everyone took the apples we offered. As one man told me, “You can’t eat an apple if you don’t have teeth!).
I have ridden the Bed & Bread truck many times since our first Radiothon back in 1987 and have always been struck by the genuine smiles of the people who come for what might very well be the only meal they get that day. Here they are… living on the streets, facing daily - most likely hourly - challenges that you and I can’t even imagine… yet no matter how red their cheeks from the cold, no matter how sad their eyes, to a person - they smile and thank those of us working the the truck for a hot meal. Talk about humbling.
I wished we could linger at each stop to talk more. To find out their stories. The man with the fingerless gloves. The woman who reached up to try and fix her hair as if embarrassed about the way it looked. The 10ish boy who asked for an extra sandwich for his brother who wasn’t feeling well.
How did they get here? How did they end up IN LINE at the truck, instead of working inside it?
I’ve heard my share of people say “They made their bed…” over the years. I’m sure you know someone like that - maybe you’ve even thought it yourself from time to time. Before my work with the Salvation Army, I may have thought that too.
But I have learned that it is far more complicated than that. The stories behind the wrinkles, the chapped lips, the tired eyes vary, of course, from person to person but they speak to a life filled with things most of us can barely comprehend: Neglect… Abuse… Mental health issues…
No one - NO ONE - would choose to live this way. And if you don’t believe me, think about this. Have you ever heard a child say, “When I grow up… I want to live on the streets and eat food from a truck!”
Me either. (Although my parents certainly thought that would happen when I told them I wanted to be a disc jockey!)
Life happens… and it happens differently for all of us.
I believe one of the most important things we can do with the time we’re given is to help those less fortunate than ourselves. Those whose stories are different from our own. And by making their lives better - we make life better for all of us. The Salvation Army Bed and Bread program - the hot meals, the nights of shelter - are a simple and incredibly effective way for us to do that.
So I ask you to donate what you can. Five dollars… or Ten… or Twenty a month.
I promise… Just like the people in line for the Truck - when they get that soup and sandwich, you’ll have a smile on your face too.
-Dick
