By Max Klinkenborg
We gave 30 showers that day—Juneteenth—at the Salvation Army Church in Tempe as part of “Day of Freedom.” Our volunteers were in the shade, gulping cold water and wiping sweat in the 116-degree mid-afternoon heat, as the man approached our registration table and asked if he could have a shower. “Of course. Take this towel and go into shower #1.” When he came out, he had a big smile on his face: “That was a little bit of heaven.”
The Church of the Palms’ Feet-N-More Shower Trailer Ministry recently passed its 200 showers mark and is currently giving 75-100 showers per month. Most all of our guests are grateful to us for the chance to clean up, wash their hair, put on clean clothes, and leave with a smile on their face. It has been a very gratifying experience for our volunteers to know they have treated our guests with respect and given them a gift that values them as a person.
Our first shower was given on February 23, 2021, at the Salvation Army Church in Surprise. We had seven volunteers, gave nine showers and charged five cellphones of our guests. In June, we began to give showers at Santa Teresita Catholic Church in El Mirage, and in July we began to give showers at Ktizo UCC in northwest Phoenix. On Monday evenings, we offer showers to our I-HELP guests. We are currently setting up the shower trailer 10 times a month: four at Church of the Palms and six off-campus where people need showers.
If you would like to volunteer or help to financially support FEET-N-MORE, please contact Max Klinkenborg.