Chapter 19

nineteen

BEN

I opened a double set of bright blue doors. "This is it. Our very own Welcome Center." I was incredibly proud of what Pastor Adam and the community had achieved in the red-brick building.

I waved at Antoinette, one of the volunteers who looked after the center from three in the afternoon until seven each evening. "This is our main reception area. When people arrive, Antoinette or one of the other volunteers welcomes them to the center and finds out what they need."

"What do people usually want?" Daniel asked.

I shrugged. "It depends on their circumstances. Some families arrive with literally nothing. Other people need budgeting advice or some sort of counseling. We have a doctor who has a free clinic twice a week, and a dentist who comes once a week. If people need a food package, we send them to the kitchen. If they need somewhere to sleep, we provide them with a bed in one of our bunk rooms."

Daniel looked surprised. "And it's all free?"

"People pay what they can afford. If someone's on a limited budget, we ask them to pay their kindness forward instead of giving us money. That's how we painted the church." I walked across to a row of meeting rooms. "Once we've met our guests' immediate needs, we have another discussion with them in these rooms. This is where we match them with people who can help in the long term."

"It sounds like a big job."

"It can be. No one wants to be homeless or unemployed or hungry. For one reason or another, their lives have taken a different path to what they expected. If they're willing to work with us, we do everything we can to make their lives less stressful."

"Ben!" Andrew walked toward me with a big grin on his face. "You aren't supposed to be here for another two hours."

"I'm showing Daniel around. Andrew Clarke, this is Daniel Nelson."

Andrew held out his hand. "Welcome to The Welcome Center. I enjoy saying that."

Daniel smiled. "It's good to be here. Are you a volunteer?"

"I am. Tonight I'm on kitchen duty, so if you'd like a yummy beef casserole with new potatoes, carrots, and beans, come and see me."

"I thought your meals would only be available to people who couldn't afford to buy food."

Andrew shook his head. "That's where The Welcome Center's different from a lot of other organizations. We're here for all our community. The last thing we want is for people to feel as though they can't enjoy a home-cooked meal."

"And someone's ability to pay for a meal might not be the issue," I added. "For some people, having another person to talk to and laugh with is more important than all the money in the world."

Andrew held up the bucket in his hand. "I'm going to the community garden to pick some beans. Do you want to come with me?"

I looked at Daniel. "Do you have the time?"

"All the time in the world."

The warmth in his eyes made my toes curl. If this was Daniel in his interested mode, I'd love to see him when he was really trying to impress someone.

Andrew cleared his throat. "Let's go. But be warned, Mr. Jeffries isn't happy. A family of rabbits has been eating his carrots."

"Mr. Jeffries is our head gardener," I explained. "He used to own a ranch. When he retired, he moved to Sunrise Bay."

Andrew held open a door. "He showed us how to grow our own vegetables. One thing led to another and, before we knew it, he'd created our first community garden. We grow enough fruit and vegetables for our kitchen as well as our food packages."

This was my favorite part of The Welcome Center. In the evenings, after I finished my shift, I'd often come here and sit on a wooden bench to unwind. There was something therapeutic about being outside, away from the hustle and bustle of what was happening in the center.

A gray-haired man in his seventies hobbled toward us.

"What have you done to yourself, Mr. Jeffries?" I asked.

"Darn rabbits. I chased them across the garden and fell over a rake. There's got to be some way of catching them."

Daniel smiled. "My dad used to dip a carrot in honey and leave it in a hutch. If you put a self-closing hinge on the door, they won't be able to get out."

Mr. Jeffries scratched the side of his head. "I've never tried honey with a carrot. We used to poison the critters. But with all the little ones who come out here, I figured it wouldn't be a good idea."

I was relieved he'd come to that conclusion on his own. Sometimes he had a unique way of solving problems. "Do you have a hutch you can use?"

Mr. Jeffries nodded. "The woodworking group made me one last week, but the rabbits haven't been eager to go inside. But honey…"

While he was contemplating the addition of honey to his rabbit-catching arsenal, Andrew held his bucket in the air.

"Is it okay if I pick some green beans for dinner?"

"Of course, it is. The beans in the first row are ready." Mr. Jeffries ambled through the garden, followed by Andrew, Daniel, and me.

As we walked around the corner of the building, Daniel's eyes widened. "The garden's huge."

"Mr. Jeffries doesn't do things by halves." I smiled when our head gardener grunted his approval. "He has a team of people who help him. Next year, we'll hold a fundraiser for a greenhouse. With the right heating, we'll be able to grow vegetables year-round."

"What do you do at the moment?"

"When we can't grow our own, we buy frozen vegetables." I started picking beans. "How much do you need?" I asked Andrew.

"A full bucket. It looks as though we'll have at least forty-five people for dinner tonight."

I smiled when Daniel added more beans to the bucket. There wouldn't be too many times when the chief executive of Wilson Enterprises picked fresh beans for his dinner.

And the funniest thing of all was that he seemed to be enjoying himself.