Love Was In the Air: Valentine's Weekend Open House

During Valentines weekend 2010, Covenant House Michigan invited the community to their campus for an open house. Community members, church groups, and students of all ages, came together to spend the day learning about Covenant House and its programs. The open house included stories from residents, a tour of both our Crisis and Rights of Passage living facilities, a chance to join the outreach team, as well as an opportunity to do volunteer work.

Every group that came through the tour was very enthusiastic and eager to learn all about CHM. Groups came throughout the day and started off their tour with stories from residents and learning about CHM. Residents were the tour guides, leading groups throughout campus and showing them where they live and shared what it is like to live at CHM day to day. Guests loved hearing stories from the residents and spending the day with them. One CHM’s Rights of Passage residents, Martin, even sang a song with each of his tour groups. Groups rotated through different parts of campus meeting a new tour guide at each destination.

Guests had the opportunity to join the outreach team in a CHM van to take a tour of Detroit. The team took groups to share the work that they do every day. The outreach team works to bring youth in need to CHM. Either CHM finds youth on the streets that need help or youth in need will contact CHM because they need a place to stay. Many of the youth the outreach team picks up are living on the streets or abandon buildings. The groups were able to see some of the conditions that these youth experience. Guests found this part of the tour very inspirational and eye-opening experience to see the conditions many of our residents endured.

One of the volunteer opportunities on the tour was to help build toiletry bags for the outreach team to give out. Guests also took time out during the tour to help organize clothing and book donations in our Chapel. They were very eager to join and jumped into different stations sorting, inventorying, or folding clothes. With the help from the guests CHM was able to organize about forty bags of clothing and twenty boxes of books. Thanks to all the help organizing books, CHM now has a library in its GED center.

All the guests on campus that day came and left with enthusiasm for the work we do with homeless youth. They were able to see first hand the opportunities CHM gives to them and were moved by the successful stories of our residents. The residents were just as inspired to see all the support from the community as they spent the day at their new home.