ST. BLASE PARISH
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About MCREST

Begun in 1988 with the idea of a homeless day camp, in the past 30 years Macomb County’s Rotating Emergency Shelter (MCREST) has evolved to now provide meals, lodging, life-skills training, housing assistance, job readiness training, and emergency shelter 365 days each year to Macomb County’s homeless population.
There are now approximately 70 committed churches, from many denominations across Macomb County, who help to provide meals and lodging to the clients of MCREST. For 7 days each summer, from Sunday night to the next Sunday morning, St. Blase becomes a welcoming community where the love of Jesus Christ is lived and shared with up to 35 women and their children in need of food and safe shelter.  Why do we do this?  We are called to love as Jesus loved - to show compassion to those in need, to uphold the dignity, honor the diversity and respect the life of every individual in our community. We are blessed to be able to help to provide homeless and displaced individuals the opportunity for successful transition to independence!
HOW CAN YOU BE A PART OF THESE EFFORTS?
1.        Educate yourself about the invisible faces most affected by homelessness today.
2.        Pray for the homeless, for generosity and compassion in our community, for direction in how you can help respond to the needs.
3.        Donate food items for meals for our guests.  Take a tag or two from the MCREST board that is placed in the gathering space one month prior to our guests’ arrival. Then return the item(s) to the parish office on the date indicated on your tag.
4.        Make a cash donation to be used for non-donated perishable food items and things such as bus tickets, gas cards and emergency items for our guests. A donation tower is stationed by the MCREST board in the gathering space and marked “MCREST Donations “ in the weeks leading up to our guests’ arrival.
5.        Become a volunteer during our hosting week.  Only with generous gifts of time and talent from a large number of St. Blase community members can we assist MCREST in serving the homeless.  Pray about how you might give of yourself:
1.        Prepare our facilities the week before our guests arrive and/or assist in tear down and cleanup once our guests depart. (Social center, gathering space, bathrooms, dining space)
2.        Transport guests to/from St. Blase, who don’t have their own transportation or are unable to use the public system.
3.        Check-In guests as they arrive each evening from 5:30-6:30 pm and assist them in getting familiar with the social center layout & restrooms.
4.        Assist in the kitchen with meal prep, serving and making lunches.
5.        Offer to do guests laundry one or two nights that week.
6.        Spend the night or a portion of the night from 8pm-6am, walking through the social center and making sure guests are comfortable, sleeping and safe. For more information, contact Lisa Grembi, Christian Service Coordinator at the parish office.

If you are interested in volunteering, please call the parish office at 586.268.2244

St.  Blase  Parish  |  12151  Fifteen  Mile  Road  |  Sterling  Heights,  MI  48312  |  586. 268. 2244