MY CITY WITH DWELLINGS STORY
Reverend Paul Wollner, Augsburg Lutheran Church, shares how the work of CwD has expanded his heart for his neighbors experiencing homelessness.
John Cahoon, Artist and CwD Volunteer, shares how the work of CwD has created a special community for his own life and has encouraged him to share his gifts with his neighbors.
John Cahoon, Artist and CwD Volunteer, shares how the work of CwD has created a special community for his own life and has encouraged him to share his gifts with his neighbors.
John Cahoon, Artist and CwD Volunteer, shares how the work of CwD has created a special community for his own life and has encouraged him to share his gifts with his neighbors.
MY CITY WITH DWELLINGS STORY
Board member and volunteer, Charlisa Powell, shares how her time at
the St Timothy's Overflow Shelter led to her love for CwD and service on the Board of Directors.
I do not remember how I learned about City with Dwellings when I first began volunteering in 2017/2018. In fact, I did not know anyone who worked or volunteered with the organization, nor did I know anyone who attended any of the churches affiliated with the Winter Overflow Shelter. However, I am abundantly grateful that God led me to such a wonderful organization, which has taught me so much about serving the homeless community in Winston-Salem.
​
I started volunteering with City with Dwellings by preparing dinner for the guests at the St. Timothy’s Women’s Overflow Shelter. Ever since I was a kid, I had always wanted to find a way to help the homeless community and I thought making dinner would provide a great opportunity to do this. Although I do not generally enjoy cooking, I really enjoyed cooking dinner for, and serving those ladies, who were always appreciative of a warm meal served by smiling, welcoming faces.
​
​
Last year I was asked to serve as a Site Coordinator at St. Timothy’s. I was very humbled and honored to have been asked by Katie Bryant to take on such as task and it has truly been one of the most rewarding experiences that I have ever had. I absolutely loved having the opportunity to really get to know our guests more and to hear their stories. I always looked forward to my shifts because it gave me the opportunity to, again, serve our guests in whatever capacity that they needed and to make them feel cared about and taken care of. I loved learning from, and laughing with, them. I loved encouraging them and lifting them up when they needed it, especially when they had a hard day, they were feeling bad, or things just were not going well for them. Overall, they fed into my soul, way more than they could ever know.
As a Board member at City with Dwellings, I have had an opportunity to further see and understand all the hard work that goes into making the organization work on a day-to-day basis. The dedication of each of the staff members, who genuinely love the work that they do and the people that they serve, is truly inspiring. They make me want to be and do better.
I am so blessed to be apart of City With Dwellings and am excited to see what the future holds for it and the ways that it will continue to make a difference in the lives of others!!