Dreaming Of Cooperstown

Every one of us has walked by someone who is experiencing homelessness at one time or another and looked away. Why? Because the problem of homelessness is so big and complicated. We don’t know what to do or how to help. So we keep walking. But the problem of homelessness in our communities isn’t going away. In fact, it’s getting worse. Ending homelessness won’t be easy. It will take all of us — as well as courage, passion, and a well-thought-out plan. The Rev. Andy Bales has a plan. Meet Rev. Andy Bales The Rev. Andy Bales still remembers the man who turned him into an advocate for the homeless more than 30 years ago. Bales, then a teacher at a Christian school in Des Moines, had just taught his students a lesson about Matthew 25:40: Whatever you do to the least fortunate, it’s as if you do it to God. At his part-time job minding a parking lot a few nights later, a stranger knocked on his window. The man had a dirty beard and was missing teeth. He asked for Bales’ sandwich. “Sorry, sir, I need my sandwich,” B