Finding Joy Amidst Difficulty

Michael Wearen

Community Life Manager, The Bowery Mission

Early COVID-19 Memories: When the pandemic hit, our doors stayed open while everything else was closing down. So we just put up the fight. Everybody was walking around with masks and gloves. We were cleaning, spraying, wiping… Sheets were changed daily, Vitamin C was everywhere. I think our community respected how we put our lives on the line, staying at this for so long.

Challenges Faced: Being low on frontline staff and working double the amount of hours, because people were sick or out. Also, coming in and not knowing what to expect the next day. You come in with a plan and you realize that you sometimes have to throw that away and be present in the moment. We were dealing with new situations daily. I'm proud that my team stuck it out. Because in the midst of this, we've had a lot of loss. There was a period where many people had deaths in their family.

Joy Amidst Difficulty: There's a verse in Nehemiah that says "the joy of the Lord is my strength." And when you think about the circumstances in which he said that, it wasn't like he was having fun. He was in the process of rebuilding a wall, and as he was rebuilding, his enemy was coming after him. So even under difficult circumstances, it's the joy of the Lord that strengthens you. It's not based on what is happening around you. God brought us here and he'll bring us through.

Moments of Hope: We do something called "the huddle" every day downstairs. It's our meeting before shifts change. And during every huddle, we give updates on what’s going on and then we put on some music and dance. Through the COVID-19 pandemic, we danced. One person does a move, and everybody else follows. We needed a way to lift our spirits. It’s the little things around us that were able to give us joy.

What Kept You Going: My faith in God, the community here and my coworkers. We've created a bond of unity. And it wasn't like I was lifting a load and the person next to me wasn't carrying their weight. It was all hands on deck. Everybody was carrying their own weight, plus more. So it was enjoyable, because the people who choose to do service at The Bowery Mission want to be here. You can see that in their work. And I'll tell you one thing, food and laughter helped us out. I don’t know how many coffee runs we had.

Small Kindnesses: At one point, when capacity was limited inside during the day because of COVID, we had a pitcher full of ice cold water at the front desk with peppermint and lemon, so that when guests came in, they could get a sense of refreshment. It was something so small, but guests would look forward to it. "Oh my goodness, can I have a cup of water?" Having nowhere to live, not knowing what you're going to do with the pandemic...the least we could do was offer a cup of refreshing water with a hint of peppermint.