当临床实验室科学家Carrie Holdren-Serrell听说约翰霍普金斯医学院的另一个部门正在为“帮助使命”组织圣诞关怀包裹时, 她知道她想让医学微生物实验室的同事们也参与进来. 霍德伦-瑟雷尔组织了一次人字拖活动，为该组织捐赠淋浴鞋, which assists people experiencing homelessness, poverty and addiction.
“我一直觉得应该帮助那些需要帮助的人，”霍德伦-瑟雷尔说.
当霍德伦-瑟雷尔把她的团队收集的数百只人字拖送过来时, she brought her family along. Shortly after, Holdren-Serrell, her family and her Mt. 锡安教会青年小组开始定期志愿提供膳食.
“三年来，我们家每个月的第一个和第三个星期六都会供应食物,” Holdren-Serrell says. “我的一些实验室同事在每月的第二个和第三个星期二提供晚餐. 我们的团队还收集袜子、洗漱用品和其他他们需要的东西.”
Kristen Anderson, help Up的活动主管、志愿者和社区参与经理, says despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Holdren-Serrell, 她的家人和她的同事仍然是奉献和忠诚的志愿者.
卡丽是第一个询问她和她的同事如何在大流行开始时更多地参与进来的人,” Anderson says. “Navigating the pandemic and our ever-changing needs on our campus, 嘉莉毫不犹豫地伸出手来，看看他们有什么用处，在需要的地方提供帮助. 她一直愿意继续参与和服务是如此令人钦佩和谦卑. 我们真的很荣幸认识她，并永远感激她的时间和服务.”
“帮助使命”的所有过夜客人都有一张床过夜, two full hot meals (dinner and breakfast), toiletries for showering, clean clothes, and an evening chapel message.
“我们客户的情况反映了巴尔的摩市许多缺乏教育的人, skills, 有过工作经历，有过人际网络，可以获得可生活的工资和可持续的职业生涯——其中很多都是因为滥用药物,” Anderson says. “对于那些无家可归的人来说，我们不仅仅是一顿热饭和一张温暖的床. We provide our clients with the hope 他们可以改变自己的生活，回归家庭，成为对社会有贡献的成员.”
If they realize a personal need for recovery from substance use, they may apply to the organization’s spiritual recovery program.
“精神康复计划提供了一个结构化的治疗社区，提供各种临床和有益的服务，以改变破坏性行为的模式,” Anderson says. “We also provide education and workforce development services. These services are a key part of our comprehensive recovery program, 允许客户通过教育机会和职业培训实现自给自足."
霍德伦-瑟雷尔说，她想成为帮助人们重新站起来的使命目标的一部分.
“I enjoy encouraging them,” Holdren-Serrell says. “Many of the men have become like family to us. I like to go out and pick up the trays from the tables. 我总是问他们这周过得怎么样，和他们聊聊生活中发生了什么. For me, it’s all about building relationships.”
Larry Giles, a former client who is now a Helping Up Mission staff member, 霍德伦-瑟雷尔和她的家人是他康复过程中重要的一部分.
“Carrie is truly selfless with her time,” Giles says. “当我知道周六是她做志愿者的时候，我总是很感激，因为在我经历困难的时候，她总是鼓励我. She even took time out to pray with me, which meant a lot. When you have had the type of life that I have had, it's hard to trust and open up to people, 但嘉莉和她的家人总是知道如何让我感到舒服.”
Holdren-Serrell’s colleague Karen D'Agostino, a Johns Hopkins medical laboratory technologist, also volunteers at Helping Up Mission.
达戈斯蒂诺说:“陷入成瘾的人有时会感到非常孤独和孤立。. “仅仅参与一顿饭的日常生活是一种与人互动的积极方式. It’s a way of communicating that I care about them.”
安德森说，如果没有志愿者的奉献精神和同情心，“帮助使命”就无法运作.
“我们的志愿者以一种尊严和包容的态度对待客户，”安德森说. “A simple, genuine smile from a volunteer can make all the difference, 帮助他们感受到支持，像一个人一样，像社会的一部分. 我们很幸运有来自不同组织的志愿者. They all play a meaningful role in the recovery process.”
