Apartment Life

I came upon a ministry that’s doing one thing very well – community. It started with a guy leaving his career path in computers to go to seminary. He moved into an apartment building and discovered that his neighbors, singles and couples, were living and exhibiting the depression caused by loneliness. They didn’t see easy ways to connect with people. Imagine a high-rise filled with various types of family groups, and also feeling like they were totally isolated. So, he came up with the idea of planting a “chaplain” in every apartment building, someone who would visit the sick and elderly, hold community events like pool parties, set up basketball leagues, picnics, etc. The chaplain would also be a “team.” They wouldn’t be a lone person trying to do this on their own. They would be either a married couple or a pair of singles (of the same gender) and Christians. His idea was to talk the owners of the apartment building into giving these people their apartment for free. He called it Apartment Life. The idea worked. It’s been in operation since 2000 and has locations all over the country. Even though the chaplains are Christians, the building owners couldn’t be more pleased with the result. The organization has grown to where their operation can have someone living onsite or offsite, while still working with the community of apartment dwellers. In low-income and affordable communities this is having a major effect on the lives of people. Spiritual conversations grow naturally, while people feel cared for and learn their own significance. Our Deacons, under the direction of Pastor Mofid, are doing this every week – going into the neighborhood to remind people that they are connected with community. That’s just one way our church is impacting this area. There are a lot more. To check out Apartment Life, you can go to https://apartmentlife.org/home. Blessings, Geoff