ACL’s Move-In Ministry delivered furniture and household items to 114 individuals and families in 2024. Recipients were either people exiting homelessness or those living in situations making them vulnerable to it. Beds, dressers, couches, kitchen tables and chairs, bookshelves, end tables, lamps, and household items like pots and pans, dishes, silverware, Tupperware, glasses and cups, bed sheets and towels, TVs and coffeemakers made their way from our storage areas to apartments and duplexes all over Austin. Occasionally, a washer and dryer were delivered as well. All of this thanks to 11 volunteers who power this ministry.
We partner with a number of service providers, including Sunrise Navigation Center, Foundation for the Homeless, Lifeworks, Casa Marianella, Foundation Communities, Urban Alchemy and others. We also serve neighbors from Bread For All Food Pantry and Mariposa Family Learning Center who are in need of furniture and household items. The case managers at these service providers give us names of people who are newly housed, and usually within a few weeks, we are able to carry out a “move-in.” Our volunteers arrive in their pickup trucks and SUVs loaded with furniture and items that help make the newly housed feel “at home.” We put together bed frames, hang TVs on walls (if necessary), and give individuals and families our blessing as we wave goodbye.
Mike, Derek, Milt, Cal, Glenn, Gail, Randy, Garth, Bob, Barry and Mark are the volunteer brains and brawn of this operation. Every single one of us is older and slower than we used to be, but maybe we’re a bit wiser as well. Dollies, hand trucks, and rollers supplement our efforts on a regular basis. And we call out steps and stoops to one another as we make our way to our destination with a large piece of furniture. It’s a team effort, without a doubt!
We couldn’t carry out this vital ministry without DONORS who continually supply us with the above-mentioned items. A special thanks goes to Triumphant Love Lutheran’s Endowment Committee which has supported this ministry with $7,500 over the past three years for the purchase of new bedding – mattresses, box springs, frames and wood for slats. While we do accept lightly used mattresses, we understand bedding to be the most important item we provide. The majority of the folks we serve need beds. Some have told us they haven’t slept on a bed for years.
In 2024, we had donations of furniture and household items from more than 150 people/households. This includes donors from churches, like Triumphant Love and Abiding Love Lutheran, who responded to special drives for pots and pans, towels and bed sheets, and silverware. Thanks also to our good collaborator, Vicki Matustik, at Oak Hill United Methodist Church, who shares donated items with us from their own collection efforts.
We also have donors – with no connection to any of our ACL churches – who hear about this ministry by word of mouth. A special thanks to Travis Heights neighbor Tom Robinson who has directed dozens of donors our way in the past two years.
In 2024, we’ve also “harvested” (the word we use) furniture, beds, and TVs from hotels. Hotels change out their furniture every so often, and we’re grateful to two Austin hotels (Quality Suites and Hampton Inn) that freely donated these items to our effort. Thanks to every single one of our donors!
Additionally, ACL is extremely grateful to member congregation Holy Cross Lutheran which provides us more than 1,000 square feet of storage space, the majority of it climate controlled. Within this space we also have a workbench where we fix chairs, spruce up couches that need it, and carry out general problem-solving!
And, what about our recipients? The majority are extremely grateful, and they tell us so. A number of our recipients are single women with children. Other recipients are going through difficulties and adjustments that have left them a bit bewildered . . . in these situations, we’re happy that they will continue in relationship with their case manager(s) from the various service providers.
There are a number of organizations that provide needed furniture and household items to folks in transition. ACL’s Move-In Ministry, however, is the only organization in Austin (that I’m aware of) that does so on a weekly basis. We operate on Wednesday and Thursday mornings, carrying out harvests and move-ins. We clocked in almost every week in 2024. And we plan to do the same in 2025. And we’re expanding our efforts to include a once-a-month Saturday morning effort to include men and women, who, working during the week, would like to get a chance to participate in this meaningful ministry. Contact me if able and interested!
Scripture says (Matthew 8 and Luke 9) that Jesus “had nowhere to lay his head.” He was essentially homeless. Yes, it was by choice – part and parcel of his mission to proclaim the message of God’s kingdom in Jerusalem and beyond. Consequently, Jesus and some of his disciples relied upon the grace and hospitality of others for room and board during these three years of his public ministry. In a similar vein, we’re providing graceful hospitality to those in our community who have gone through deep struggles – addiction, domestic abuse, and poverty. And yes, some of these have made poor choices that exacerbated these struggles. All the same, none of us has lived a life free of mistakes.
Simply put, when our community members are off the streets, it’s better for all of us – immeasurably. We’re happy to provide this service to make our community a better place, especially for those most vulnerable in our midst. Thanks for your support and collaboration.
- Pastor Tim Anderson, ACL Director