Sorry for the mystery

It really has been years since MaryMercy has connected with Augusta. Life has been crazy as usual-par for the course.
A quick update-we have a greenhouse and Thrift Store at 2034 Broad St. Open Mondays to Saturdays 10 to 5.
We still pick-up items for the store. I will try and post every week.
A lot is happening here in Harrisburg-most of it positive-do not believe the haters like the Concerned "Crazies" of Harrisburg-they are all evil bullies.

One of Our Own has Passed

Finally-with mixed emotions we are sad to report that Annette (the one who could talk in front of herself) has succumbed to her life of years of severe addiction to drugs. She is at peace.

Even in her death people were still confusing the two Annettes. One woman wanted to know when the house at Crawford Avenue will be for rent now that Annette has died.

I am sorry-but I had to LAUGH out loud on that one!

It may take years for people to realize it-but now there really is only one Annette living in Harrisburg.

Only Our Peeps (People)

So we send one of our peeps (people) let's call him E-yes we bought a vowel-We sent him off to buy 50 hotdogs with fifty buns. He spent over $130! He bought 50 packs of hotdogs!!

It was so stupid we just had to laugh.

If you want to know why these peeps are homeless...

Our Mottos

--The moon is always full over Mercy Ministries, Inc.  (See photo from earlier post)

--You don’t have to be crazy to work here-we’ll train you.

--Ask yourself-Who do you see? What do you have? Jesus said, “The poor will be with you always.” 

--Fran commenting on a “volunteer” and his numerous problems, “I hope there is a pill for that.” She said.

My personal favorite:

--Lord give me patience AND an untraceable handgun.

On that note-Working Girls

My church partnered with a Harrisburg church to do a Women’s Expo which was a health clinic for women. We were giving free manicures, goody bags and prayer-if they wanted us to pray for them. My non-denominational church hung a HUGE banner on the side of Mercy Ministries advertising the Expo. The church where the women's expo will be held was two blocks away from the Center.

Susie receives a call on her personal cell phone from a drunk woman complaining about women being exposed. The drunk woman said, “It’s illegal to expo women in North Carolina.”

Susie tried explaining to her it was about women’s health.

The woman replied, “I was expoed and my health was greatly affected.”

We could only LAUGH at this point.

So I did a prank call on Susie’s phone asking to be involved in the women’s expose and swore I was NOT from North Carolina. 

How did that lady get Susie's cell phone number? The banner had the Day Center number on it.

Another Working Girl Story

Fran receives a mysterious phone call about a clinic wanting to do a health check-up on all the prostitutes in Harrisburg. She calls me and asks what television channel is sponsoring this. I make several phones calls to the local affiliate stations. I discover that the local network CBS station had an agreement with Christ Community Clinic. They wanted to do a health check of our “working girls.”

So when the time came for the clinic-it was too late-Fran told all our working girls it was a hoax and they left the Mercy Ministries Fenwick Street Center before the clinic started.  That was a good thing because about four to five Richmond County police cruisers showed up outside Mercy Ministries. A really mean officer was carding the women walking through our door. It turns out the television news reporter asked the police there to-get this-help her identify the PROSTITUTES for her story!

I swear-you do NOT need any brain cells to work for TV. How many interviews will you get from a WORKING GIRL with police presence a shoulder’s length away….Hmmmmm.

We felt bad because the clinic personnel had no women-so we pulled FORMER working girls from Mercy Manor and had a local pseudo women’s shelter bring their gals out.

I decided (privately to myself) that this event should be called the HOE-DOWN. Unfortunately I voiced that thought aloud to Fran.

To my horror Fran told our pastor what I wanted to call it. We at least all had a good laugh over it-including our pastor.

No offense to the working girls. We know they are trying to survive on the streets and we gladly feed and clothe them. If they want to get out of that life we would not hesitate to assist them.

Just Say No

Here is a story that begs you to say NO to drugs. Almost a year later…May 2010-Annette (the one who could talk in front of herself) had suffered a stroke. She had a black eye and her face kind of sagged to one side because she had fallen to floor while having a seizure. It was amazing she could still walk and talk a few days after the stroke.

I had what I thought was a reality check with her. I told her she was lucky she could still walk and function. I also said there where no 60 year-old crack heads (Annette was 48) and that CRACK will kill her.

Annette proceeded to set the record straight and tell me she didn’t smoke crack the day she had a stroke. She was doing METH. It was her first time ever for THAT drug.

Well excuse me! Like one drug is “better” over another. 

I was incredulous by her response.

P.S. Doing drugs DOES make one stupid!