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Many of you reading this are probably wondering why we aren't doing Scoot for Toys this year. First and foremost, I want to say how much I love the staff at the Ronald McDonald house. They are an amazing crew that manage to perform miracles every day on a shoe string budget. And even more importantly, I love the kids. The memory of their smiles have gotten me through plenty of days. And, I know that we will once again Scoot for Toys, however, I felt the need to dig deeper this year. I knew that the kids at the RM House had a roof over their heads and food in their tummies, but that isn't the case for many children in Denver. Every day I drive past the Samaritan House on my way to Erico. I see the women and children outside the shelter and it breaks my heart. They don't have a roof over their head nor any idea where their next meal might come from. One day instead of driving past, I pulled into the parking lot and went inside. I asked to meet the person in charge of the shelter. He was out that morning, but they gave me his phone number and I called and got an appointment for the next day. His name is Father Michael and his shelter cares for over 300 people a night. There is actually an entire floor devoted to just women and children. Father Michael walked me through the shelter, introducing me to staff members, saying hello to residents and making sure the cafeteria staff knew they were appreciated. He is a quiet, unassuming man that makes everyone he meets feel special. I asked him what we could do, and his list was short yet imperative as the shelter is at capacity every night. As the recession drags on, Father Michael is seeing no relief in the number of people he needs to feed and house. I know that purchasing a turkey or a blanket isn't has fun as shopping for a toy or a child. (see second blog post for rest of entry)