I am honored to introduce you all to Roger Temme. Not only is Roger part of an amazing organization providing emotional and relational care to those living with HIV/AIDS and Cancer, but Roger has become a good friend. He has a heart of gold, and his life truly represents one who cares. If you have any interest in serving and loving those who are ill, let me recommend working and volunteering with this organization. I personally have served with them, and it has been amazing! The story is too long to add to this post, so I’ll stop talking and let you read Roger’s guest blog:
Sometimes sharing a simple cup of coffee can be the beginning of a wonderful collaboration. And so it happ
ened that I had the real pleasure of meeting a wonderful human being who simply wanted to make a difference in the lives of people in need. That cup of coffee at the Starbucks on Oltorf and I-35 with Matthew Hansen began a wonderful partnership between Austin New Church and The Care Communities which I hope will continue in one way or the other for many years to come.
The vision of Austin New Church is to care passionately for all—especially the abandoned and the helpless. The vision of The Care Communities is to provide care unconditionally for folks living with AIDS or cancer and to make sure that no one goes through their illness alone. What makes churches and organizations work well is a common vision that is lived out in a practical way. One of my favorite quotes that I often used in sermons and presentations comes from Henri Nouwen, one of my favorite spiritual authors, is “Every human being has a great, yet often unknown gift: to care, to be compassionate, to become present to the other, to listen, to hear and receive—if that gift would be set free and made available—Miracles could take place.” That quote has become my
personal mission statement as I come on my 11 years at The Care Communities. I have been blessed to meet folks like Matthew and congregations like Austin New Church. I invite you to become part of our partnership. Check out or website www.thecarecommunities.org and become a part of a Care Team. And as St. Francis said to his followers often, “Pace e Bene” “Peace and all Good”
Roger Temme
Outreach Coordinator
The Care Communities
and keep it less than 250 words. I’ll try to do both.
about it. In fact, on March 6th Armando will be doing a community project leadership training for Restore Austin at Austin New Church. To find out more about the training, click
We often times, just think of our passions and the need and we forget to ask what neighbors care about (I confess, I’m guilty of doing this in the past). Taking the time to ask people why they’re involved or what issues are important to them builds bridges and trust, especially in low-income neighborhoods. Ever wonder why some projects work in some neighborhoods and not in others? Part of the reasons projects don’t get traction or even work is because neighbors weren’t involved in the process; they weren’t asked for their input and so people don’t come out to support the effort. This is why it’s important to take the time to ask people what they care about; what their aspirations are for their neighborhoods and getting them involved. Taking the time to balancing these three approaches will help not only you with your project but neighborhoods in the long-run.