Leadership Reflections from Ryan Duerk of Miracle Hill Ministries

God’s providence brought me to Miracle Hill Ministries emergency shelter for men called the Greenville Rescue Mission in the spring of 2003. I was a drug addict, a convicted criminal, homeless, and alone. I had no family who would talk to me, and I had burned every bridge to every meaningful relationship I had in the world. At the time, I had never stepped foot in a rescue mission. I knew they existed, but in my long road of brokenness I had earned a PhD in the University of hard knocks, and had managed to couch-surf, have short stretches in rentals, longer periods in week-by-week motels, or I stayed on the streets for very short periods of time.

Several years later, I exited the shelter for good and during my time I found a relationship with God, sobriety, useful employment skills, meaningful relationships, and purpose in life. Miracle Hill Ministries and its partnerships throughout the community helped me at a time in which I was an “untouchable.”

Fast forward 12 years.

After years of working with individuals who are struggling with homelessness and addiction, I found myself voted in as Steering Committee Chair of this fledgling backbone organization for the partnership called the Greenville Homeless Alliance. Although the organization had existed in some form since 2015, it was newly formed as an official collective impact coalition of public and private partners and was bubbling with excitement and energy to tackle the systematic issues surrounding homelessness.

I complete my two years as Chair of the Greenville Homeless Alliance Steering Committee at the end of June, and I wanted to share some of what I have learned or beliefs that were highlighted during my time as chair.

“These issues will not be solved by the usual suspects”

My friend, our friend, Deb Richardson Moore said this a few years ago, and I have seen the truth in this statement repeatedly over the past few years. As a service provider, Miracle Hill Ministries, and all the service providers are going to keep on serving the people we have been called to serve regardless of others involvement. This represents the status quo of helping those experiencing homelessness in Greenville. If we want to make a significant impact on Greenville’s issue of those experiencing homelessness, it is going to take people who do not typically engage in the issue to step forward.

This includes significant buy-in and contribution from our City and County. Not just verbal agreement in initiatives, but time and financial contributions on a level not before seen in Greenville. Additionally, our Greenville community of citizens must have buy-in to the solutions. We need contribution from small and large businesses as well as from Mr. John Q. Public if we ever want to see homelessness brief and rare in Greenville.

There is no I in Team.

Most of us have a very specific opinion about how to address homelessness, and I am not an exception to that truth. Sitting in the various meetings of GHA, I am often frustrated and challenged in my own perception of the world, its problems, and the various solutions. I know I speak for others at GHA in this reality. If we truly want to work towards a better world, we must be in the business of give and take. We need to stand up for our truths but be flexible as we come up with solutions. It is in our diversity that we are strongest, but only if we get out of our own way and value the many various opinions and truths of others. Certainly, there are nonstarters for all of us and things we are not willing to compromise, but we should be willing to give ground and be adaptable where we can.

It is both people and systems.

Tim Keller writes in his book ‘Ministries of Mercy’ that people often disagree about the root causes of systematic issues of brokenness such as homelessness. Some will point to broken systems, and some will point to broken people. To that dichotomy, I would agree with Mr. Keller that the reality is that it is both.

The work of GHA should be at the fifty-thousand-foot level as it addresses and advocates, but we should never lose site of the people we are called to serve. People experiencing homelessness are that, they are people, and each one has their own story and issues. If we get so far away from the ground that we lose the faces and scars of those we are called to serve, we will certainly lose site of the solutions as well.

All people have value and a voice.

Taking the previous thought a step further, we need to incorporate more voices of those who are or have experienced homelessness. Even though I have the experience and can speak to the issue, I will admit that I am so many years beyond the experience that I often forget what it was like, until I walk through the front doors of one of our shelters and talk to our guests. Those that are closer to the experience can help us “see” through their eyes in a way that a book or a seminar cannot. Moreover, those who are experiencing homelessness are not defined by that experience and offer great value to the conversation and our community.

There are a ton of phrases and descriptions given to those experiencing homelessness, and most are not flattering. The reality is that experiencing homelessness is not something that is discriminatory to a certain “type” of people. Rather, this can happen to most everyone who is reading this blog. Most Americans are one or two paychecks away from the experience themselves, and I don’t think any of you would think you do not add value to the conversation. Homelessness can affect all of us regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, education, or socioeconomic background. We need to embrace the value and voice all in Greenville experiencing homelessness more wholly, to include those currently struggling. This will help us all to see past our own preconceived notions about how the world works.

This is not for the faint of heart.

Lauren Stevens of the Salvation Army of Greenville County, and the incoming Chair of the Homeless Alliance, often says, “No one is going to win homelessness.”

Although we talk about homelessness being brief and rare, we don’t talk about it disappearing. On the contrary, if we do nothing, it will grow. The belief in the Upstate is that it is growing, but the numbers don’t support that notion. The reality is that Greenville is growing, and the issue of homelessness is just more visible to the average citizen. One phrase used to describe homelessness is “our invisible neighbors.” This is not some hocus pocus phrase but rather it is a condemnation on us. We choose not to see them because they reflect the brokenness of our world and the brokenness in ourselves.

I believe the Lord helped me see them because I am them. I also believe that the more of us who see them, know them, love them, and serve them, the better our chances are at creating real change in Greenville.

As a Christian, I can’t get away from serving them. The Bible is full of scriptures that tell me to serve. Perhaps my favorite is in Matthew 22:37-40. Paraphrasing the passage, God says the most important thing we can do is love God, and the second most important thing is to love our neighbor. The radical part of the passage is that Jesus says these two ideas are connected and, “the second is like the first.” Plainly, Jesus says that loving our neighbor is like loving God.

I cannot get away from that idea, and I truly believe that the more of us who subscribe to loving our neighbor, the better we can address together the issues of homelessness. The Greenville Homeless Alliance is doing just that, loving our neighbors.

As GHA moves forward in its strategy, I hope the momentum continues to swing in the same direction, and together, we truly work towards making homelessness brief and rare in Greenville.

- Ryan T. Duerk, Miracle Hill Ministries President/CEO