By Carol Walker
Yesterday as I walked into Hobby Lobby, I encountered Merlene Broer, who told me she was along for the ride with her husband, Roger. Roger was going through the checkout line at Hobby Lobby, assisting a young artist as she purchased materials for an art project. He is mentoring the young woman, guiding her with his years of experience as an accomplished artist and putting to good use that experience in helping a young lady follow her dream.
That same day, I had a conversation with a woman currently living at Passages — a faith-based, non-profit ministry providing help to women transitioning from prison. There are some pretty startling statistics on the Passages website, such as “Half of women released from prison will be re-incarcerated within three years,” and “Up to 90 percent of women in prison were abused as little girls.”
The people involved with Passages and those who support the ministry financially are providing, not only a safe place for women, but counseling them, helping them to find employment and day care and giving them a fresh start — so they will not become one of the statistics.
Recently, I read a story about a woman who began following the promiscuous, booze-filled lifestyle of her mother and found herself single and pregnant — not even knowing the identity of the father of the baby. Though scared and overwhelmed, she made a decision to keep the baby and give him the life she never had. People were there for her. Though she worried about the response of her pregnancy within her church community, she was enveloped with love every step of the way — from standing beside her in the hospital the day the baby was born to the provision of baby items and from helping with daycare once she went back to work to providing assistance in budgeting.
All the help she received from people inside and outside the church has made a difference in her life and is breaking the cycle for her child, giving the little one a fighting chance.
This week, there is help in another realm. The hopelessness that people feel in the midst of grief can be debilitating, but there are positive ways of dealing with it. Marci Ewing-Maddux is an experienced counselor with Christian Life Ministries, a counseling center that has been in existence in Rapid City since 1981. She has consented to come to Hill City to share the wisdom of her own journey with grief and offer hope to others who are experiencing loss.
In a recent interview with Paul LaRoche of Brulé, I took note of a quote that he considers to be true in his world, “As to the poor life of a tunesmith, his craft appears to be at its highest when his life is at its lowest.”
Sometimes the challenges of life may seem large and looming, but they can also launch us into something positive. It might not be a new song, but it could be new connections with people who can help us on a career path, help us get a fresh start and even help us find hope again when all hope is gone.