Here is a photo from one of the projects Mission St Louis had going on this past Saturday in their neighborhood. If you click the photo, you’ll be directed to the album.

Mission St Louis is the group that is launching and will be running NeighborLink St Louis.

I headed down with a friend, Ryan, this past Friday to meet with their staff and their board to discuss operational stuff for the organization and how it all works. I also was able to get more details on how they operate in the city and how they intend to run NLSTL. I couldn’t be more excited to turn the organization over to them. They get what we’re trying to do and I know they’ll figure out how it all works once they get going with it.

On Saturday, they partnered with Rebuilding Together’s Local branch to take the projects in their focused neighborhood and to tackle some other projects they had. It was a fantastic opportunity to see so many volunteers following the call to love their neighbors in a practical and tangible way.

When I see ordinary people like me investing their time doing things like cleaning, painting and home repairs for folks who have had a difficult patch in life it marks me deeply. No task they did were revolutionary in and of themselves, but when all of those tasks were completed and combined together, homes were rebuild and a sense of hope was restored for not only the home owner, but those serving as well.

There is hope in transformation no matter what side of the fence you’re on and no matter what you’re doing. If you’re changing something that needs changed, there is hope there.

So if you need some hope in your life, go and engage with change.