Breakfast 16 -- Kenny Washington

           I asked Kenny how long he has been at Back Bay Mission.  He told me he has been there 8 years,  that seems so strange, because I do not ever remember him not being there.  Kenny is another guy who has been doing everything he can 52 weeks a year to help those on the margins.  I took Kenny to a Cardinals game this year as he was in St. Louis to attend a poverty conference.  As I work with Richie LaPlume and Grechen Shipp and all the great people at DePaul USA,  am I encouraged that more and more good people across the country are getting together to share ideas about how to help those whose burdens are a little more than they can carry.

          At every board meeting,  I would actively seek out Kenny to have a conversation about what he is doing and we would invariably tangent off to MIZZOU in the SEC,  or the Cardinals.  One of my favorite Cards games of all time was our comeback versus Kershaw in the playoffs.  The whole board was together socializing and the Cards quickly fell behind and good friends started consoling me about the inevitable loss,  then that great comeback.  Come to think of it,  I was with the Back Bay Board at Shaggy's for the controversial infield fly call against Atlanta. 

           At one board meeting, the crowd started slowly turning in for the night and it ended up with just Kenny and Roxanne and myself talking about the homeless.  It was eye opening to hear the stories of hope and heartbreak for the homeless.  Just simply amazing stories about resilience and loss, some tales of perseverance, and some tales of battle lost.  What I got from Roxanne and especially Kenny that night was how much they knew and cared about each of these people as individuals.  They knew names, the knew the individual needs, and strengths,  but it was in this conversation that I was so impressed with their work ethic, their heart, and their compassion.  It takes a special kind of person to wake up and tilt at windmills for the sake of others.

          This year,  we had 38 great people perform magnificently for one week,  building, painting, feeding, and caring.  They know how proud of them I am.  Kenny does this for 52 weeks every year,  you can probably guess how proud of him I am.