Episode transcript
This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity and readability.
What happens when someone chooses to serve
Jaime Buxton: Have you ever looked at someone’s life and thought, “I wonder how they got there.” Maybe it’s a woman holding a sign at an intersection. Perhaps it’s a man who slept in his car. Maybe it’s that same child being dropped off at school every day, hungry and tired. Well, what if your knee-jerk reaction isn’t right? What if you really dug deeper and wanted to understand the stories behind the statistics of homelessness? This is the Not That Different podcast, where we take a deeper look at the stories behind the statistics of homelessness, the real life stories of people who are experiencing life without a home.
Because when we stop and when we really listen, I believe that something special happens. We find out that people are more like us than we think. The people who are experiencing homelessness around us aren’t those people. They’re our mothers, sisters, brothers, fathers. They’re our neighbors, the people Christ calls us to love. Today we’re talking with one of The City Mission’s dedicated volunteers and someone who I adore and I’m excited for you to get to meet her.
We’re going to talk about what brought her to the mission and understand her perspective of what it’s like to serve with the women and children that we have at Laura’s Home Women’s Crisis Center. I’m Jaime Buxton. I’m your podcast host. Still wondering how I got that job, but loving the opportunity to do it. We’re going to dive right in today with our dedicated Laura’s Home volunteer, Barb Evatz. Welcome.
Barb Evatz: Thank you. I’m so excited to be here to share my story.
Jaime Buxton: I am too. This has been a long time coming. We’ve talked about ways to get you to be able to share your story and I’m so glad. Thank you for being willing to do this.
Barb Evatz: Thank you for the invite.
How Barb found The City Mission
Jaime Buxton: Absolutely. So, tell me, Barb, how did you first get connected to the mission? You told me that I don’t really know this story, so I’m excited to hear it.
Barb Evatz: Sure. After I retired, I asked the Lord to help me determine what my future in serving would be, what my purpose would be for the rest of my life. I currently serve at my church. I love it. I’m fed there. They have wonderful ministries. I’m part of some of them. My husband and I lead a couples’ life group in our home. And so I just I love I love working there and being with them.
However, I just feel like God wants something more for me. I feel like there’s a calling on my life that I didn’t yet know. Interestingly, I had a friend that visited from out of town and out of nowhere she says to me, “What do you think of people who are homeless?”
Jaime Buxton: Really, that was just a topic of conversation.
Barb Evatz: Topic of conversation.
Jaime Buxton: Okay.
Barb Evatz: And so I thought about that and I realized I don’t really have an opinion. The little opinion I do have probably wasn’t very favorable. And what I realized is that I don’t really see the homeless. So the next thing she says to me is, I want you to know that I could have been homeless. Wow. She repeated it with tears. I could have been homeless. She then proceeds to tell me that she was in an abusive relationship.
Okay. That devastated her financially and emotionally. And I was really dumbfounded, which is something I would never have expected to hear from her. And she was a beautiful person, had a home, had a good job. And in that moment, it clicked that I guess anybody could be homeless. And I know that I’ve heard Linda, the CEO, say that we ask people when they come in, what has happened to you? Because I have discovered that often times it’s trauma or loss or even maybe an imminent danger situation where people are just not feeling safe.
So after she left, not soon after she left, I receive an email from The City Mission and the subject is lunch and learn. And I thought, wow, what a coincidence that I would be talking with her about homelessness and then I receive an email about homelessness. So I thought, I’ve got to check this out because this is just, you know, too crazy. Yeah. And so I accepted the invitation and I knocked on the door.
I remember at the administrative offices where the lunch and learn was being held and the people who greeted me, the staff was so friendly and so pleasant and so upbeat and beautifully professionally dressed and I thought this is not what I expected in a homeless shelter. So I was escorted into the room where the lunch and learn was being held and I met Michael the chief operating officer who was super friendly and he was standing with Linda Uveges the CEO and they were just talking to me like I was just like a regular person and here I was with the with the C-suite with the with the executives and I was very impressed initially.
So then I heard of course about the mission, who you serve and what your focus is. And what blew me away because I did not know this is the fact that it’s a Christ-centered organization and that was a bonus because I love the Lord and I thought wow that’s just that’s got to be different because Christ is in everything that they do. So that’s how I found the mission and I am very grateful.
Jaime Buxton: That’s amazing. And not to I mean obviously the Lord was really powerful in those couple of days for you. I mean having that conversation and then followed up with that invitation. And what you probably don’t know is that we’ve never done that lunch and learn before. I happen to be the mastermind behind that lunch and learn and we were trying to figure out how The City Mission could start commemorating World Homeless Day every year.
And so we just wanted to start small and you know you were one of what maybe 15 people that attended that day. I remember I was in that room and thinking this is a win. We got 15 people to understand homelessness better today. And so just knowing that even what came before, I know what comes after for you. Obviously, you become a volunteer, right? But that’s so cool how God just aligned all of those things for you personally and knew that this moment would even come and this opportunity to share what he did.
So that’s amazing.
Finding a place to use her gifts
Jaime Buxton: So you’re talking to Mike and Linda and you’re part of the lunch and learn. Obviously something said, “Okay, I want to be a volunteer here.” I know we talked about it. We kind of talked about different levels of engagement at that event. And you decided to go the volunteer route. What was it that compelled you or
Barb Evatz: Okay. So, after the lunch and learn, there was an invitation to tour Crossroads, the men’s crisis center, which is right next to the administrative offices, and I just had to go do that. So, of course, I did. A nice gentleman, he must run the men’s Crossroads.
Jaime Buxton: Okay.
Barb Evatz: You know brought us into the building and the feeling that I had in the building was of warmth and very dignified and very clean and I continued to be curious. What was amazing is he took us to the work development center,
Jaime Buxton: Also known as the resource center, right?
Barb Evatz: Where at crossroads the men are taught job searching skills and learning how to find their next job, resume building, interviewing, and I had been praying to God to find me something where I could help people with their job search. Because he gifted me with the ability to help people with resumes and interviewing etc. And that was momentous for me as well when I thought I could help people do this which is God gave me a gift and I’m good at it and I again was kind of in disbelief about that.
So I decided I wanted to volunteer and so I did what was necessary. I believe it was a webinar called Volunteer 101. I attended that and I decided I wanted to work with the women at Laura’s Home. So, I did what I needed to do and then I heard from Raquel Nashe, the work development specialist for Laura’s Home, invited me in to talk with her and that went very well. And a year ago, January of 2025, I began working in work development with Raquel.
And in the summer last year, Raquel pulls me aside and says, “I have another opportunity for you at Laura’s Home, and I want you to consider it.” And she said, “It’s our financial literacy program called Faith & Finances that I’d like you to consider teaching.” And I was like, “Oh, God, you have a sense of humor.” Faith, I think I can do. I think I have enough faith. But finance, it’s like she said, “I don’t want you to worry about the finance.
You’re not going to be doing investments or 401ks or anything stock market.” She said, “You’re just going to be helping them with basic financial skills and help them with their challenges financially.” And I was nervous, but I remember that the saying that God doesn’t call the equipped, he equips the called, right? And he really did equip me because what happened next was very reassuring to me. The mission took me through training where you need to be certified to take that.
So it was a six-week Zoom call with other people in the country who are also learning Faith & Finances. And Miss Patty was teaching the class at the time and so I asked Raquel if I could go in and sit with her and shadow. That was amazingly helpful. And then there is another wonderful woman, Miss Becky, who’s teaching it. She’s taught for three years, continuing to, and she kind of just took me under her wing and was a mentor to me as to, you know, tips and, you know, things to do and how to be the best I could be.
And, she’s amazing and we help each other out and it’s just a beautiful relationship. So, that just all really came together beautifully. And, I love the women that I teach. And that was another thing Raquel said. She said, “In work development, you don’t get to spend a lot of time with an individual woman. And I know your personality. I know that you like that. In Faith & Finances, you’re going to be able to really get to know the women well.”
Jaime Buxton: Right. So, I love that. And I love that again, the Lord just kept equipping you and putting the next opportunity right in front of you. Almost made it impossible to say no. I feel like
Barb Evatz: He did. He did.
Jaime Buxton: He just kept moving.
Barb Evatz: Yeah. But I’d also like to add that when you think of it and I think of God, I think that God I know God wants us to help the poor and the needy. And he says, you know, love me and love my people, right? And these are his people. And so I didn’t really have to pray very long over it because I knew that this was in God’s will because of what I know about him from the word and his character.
So I couldn’t say no. Although I was, you know, I was curious as to how I would do, I couldn’t say no.
Faith & Finances and a community of support
Jaime Buxton: I love that. I think maybe going off topic a little bit here, but so many people have a hard time discerning God’s will. And you just so beautifully said, I knew from his word and this opportunity. Those things I think sometimes as Christians we can overthink it too much. This can’t possibly be what God wants or you know and I just love how you just defined that so simply there. Thank you.
Give me a little snippet of what is Faith & Finances for people who aren’t familiar. I know that’s from the Chalmers Center, correct?
Barb Evatz: Yes, it is.
Jaime Buxton: And that’s who teaches the class, right?
Barb Evatz: Yes. It’s a an 8-week program that we teach here and it has topics about overcoming financial challenges, very basic concepts such as how to save, a spending plan, another word for budget, that they learn to look at their income and then look at what they have to spend and then look at what’s left at the end of the month. And we also talk about needs versus wants because a lot of people think that they need things that they truly just want.
Jaime Buxton: Amen. Yeah, me.
Barb Evatz: We teach also how to thrift look for things on sale. What I love so much about the course is that it really gets them to think more deeply. And the other thing that I love about the class is it’s small, five or six people. And I love the sense of community among the group. They encourage each other. When somebody says something, they go, “Oh, no.” You know, and they, you know, they’re they’re cute about it, but they encourage each other.
And I love that community, sense of community and how they encourage each other.
Jaime Buxton: I totally agree. It’s really hard to explain that to an outsider at Laura’s Home, that the community of women in crisis and then growing together is a really strong bond. And so you getting to see that in a small group is just I’m sure it’s a really beautiful thing.
Barb Evatz: It is.
Jaime Buxton: And it’s a class where I think a lot of our ladies and our men for that matter can get nervous talking about money or you know in the same way that you said, “Oh, I don’t know if I’m capable of teaching it.” And what I love about Chalmers is they do so much storytelling that you’re you’re almost like judging kind of these scenarios and then that gets them open to talking about their own management or mismanagement of their of their funds, right?
And so I love exactly what you’re talking about that community that happens. So thank you. What a privilege.
Barb Evatz: It really is a privilege, Jaime. It really is.
How serving changes our perspective
Jaime Buxton: Oh, I love that. So, how has your perspective of people experiencing homelessness changed? I think you said you really didn’t have an opinion. So what do you think? What has God been doing as you continue to come back and serve?
Barb Evatz: Yeah. Well, you know, the podcast is called Not That Different and I felt early on that the people that I’m working with really are not that different from me and from many other people. What’s different for me now is that I see them as people who have the same desires and hopes that we all do. I mean, the moms there, they want the best for their children. You know, they want a healthy family life.
They want healthy finances. The major difference, as I said earlier, was what happened to them, their story. Their story is just different, right? And I am so impressed with their commitment, their determination, their desire to really change. It’s hard work being here at Laura’s Home. I know that some people come in and they don’t want to work and so obviously they’re not here. But I know that everybody is required to have a job which I also like from the aspect of that job can go on their resume and some people don’t have much work experience right That means they have to show up, be on time, they have to do the job, and it shows responsibility.
And they have to go through the structured program
Jaime Buxton: Right
Barb Evatz: And that just makes Laura’s Home so The City Mission so different from any other homeless shelter that I’m aware of.
Jaime Buxton: I think so too. I think so too. So, what keeps you coming back? I know it’s kind of the same line of questioning, but what for you is that I can’t wait to get back the next time.
Barb Evatz: Well, when I thought about volunteering, I thought I thought about it from the perspective of what I would give them. I felt that I would be a change agent hopefully in their lives. But what I didn’t count on is how much they’ve changed me. And that is what keeps me coming back because I learn from them. I’m always joking. They have a lot of like they’re younger, many of them are younger, so they have a lot of technology skills and they tell me about apps and different places to thrift when we get to those subjects and I’m just always saying to them, gosh, I learned so much from you.
They’re just fun. They’re honest. They’re vulnerable and they’re committed, you know. I think about the day when they made the decision to call The City Mission or knock on The City Mission’s door. That takes a lot of courage to change your life. And I admire them for that. I truly do because I know that’s really hard to do. We know we need to make changes sometimes. We just can’t get the courage to do it.
And I also love the transformation. That’s really what Laura’s Home is about. It’s about transformation. When they walk through the door, they’re hopeless. And when they leave, they’ve got hopefulness. And that’s what I see and that’s what keeps me coming back. Just the growth and the work that The City Mission does.
Jaime Buxton: I love that. You get this, Barb. Like you should be this podcast host. Please. I mean, you are just nailing exactly what I want our listeners to hear and to understand. Thank you. Thank you for following the Lord’s just leading and prompting you into our doors and just taking each next step. It’s so obvious that he’s using you, but also changing you and now giving you this opportunity to be a mouthpiece on behalf of, you know, these amazing women and children and the men, too.
I know you don’t work with them, but you’re advocating for them, too, all the same. And I’m just so grateful. I feel like she gets us, and that makes me so happy.
Stories of confidence and growth
Jaime Buxton: Is there a specific story or scenario, something that really stands out to you that maybe on the hard days is like, okay, if God can do this, this keeps me coming back each time.
Barb Evatz: Yeah, there’s a couple actually. I’m going to start with when I was in the resource center helping a woman with her resume. She had a beautiful resume, but it needed some editing. So, I helped her with that. And after she saw it printed, she started to like tear up, almost cry. And I looked at her and she said, “I didn’t want to come today to this class. I was just really discouraged.” But she said, “You made my resume look so good.” And I feel happy now.
And so I chatted with her for a while and I prayed for her and I carry these little wooden crosses with me and when I when I’m prompted by God, which he did prompt me, then I give her the cross and I tell her that, you know, God loves her and will never leave her or forsake her. And we started a relationship and for the next several weeks she was still coming to that class and I was still there and our relationship grew.
She eventually left Laura’s Home and I was able to make contact with her and she has a beautiful little apartment and she is stable financially and we are friends. She and I talk on the phone, we text, I’ve seen her a couple of times, I’ve seen her apartment, we’ve been to lunch and the beautiful thing is I see her with the eyes of God. And it’s just amazing the friendship that we’ve we’ve built.
She is a very strong Christian. She has a church. She does not have a car. She takes the bus and walks whatever she needs to do to get to church. She serves there. And I am very grateful for that relationship.
Jaime Buxton: That’s amazing. Thank you. Thank you. I was going to say I heard you say you had more than one. So go ahead and tell me the other.
Barb Evatz: Well, the other one is about Faith & Finances, okay? And how that changed somebody’s outlook. So, a woman in Faith & Finances was very excited about upcoming graduation. And by the way, I can talk all day about graduation if you want to ask me any questions on that. And she’d never graduated anything before. She’d never been in a graduation, so this meant a lot to her. So, she wanted to get all dolled up and buy a new outfit and new makeup and do her nails and all of that.
And so she had spent $400 on all of that preparation for graduation. And then we did the unit on spending. And yikes, we talked about different ways to save. So she on her own came and she reported back to the class that she decided to go to the Laura’s Home boutique, which are all donations. She found a beautiful dress. She found a purse. She couldn’t find shoes, so she did spend $60 on the shoes.
Did I tell you she spent $400 on the outfit? Okay. And she decided to do her own nails and her own hair. And so her $400 went down to $60. And that blew me away that she took heart with what she learned and realized there was a different way. And I think that’s what’s great about Faith & Finances is it gives the girls a different perspective on things that they didn’t really know much about.
So that was a that was just a really great story.
The Laura’s Home boutique
Jaime Buxton: Let’s give a shout out to the boutique at Laura’s Home because you know we’re always looking for volunteers and people are always wondering about donations. So have you been in the boutique before?
Barb Evatz: Do you know I have not.
Jaime Buxton: Okay. Okay. Well, I want you to know that we’ve got volunteers. Well, first of all, we have people who donate wonderfully, gently used, and new items. And then we have volunteers who in the most dignified way put those items out. And that’s why we call it the boutique. It’s not just, you know, it’s not just the spot where you get your stuff, you know, it’s it’s it’s nice and there’s there’s hangers and it looks like a little store and it’s arranged by size and we change it seasonally.
And I used to take my interns when I was in charge of interns, the last day of their training, we did a day in their shoes and I would say before we even start today, you’re going to change out of everything you’re wearing and you have to leave wearing a full outfit from this boutique. And you know, I’m a bigger girl, so I know that can cause a lot of stress, like, oh, there’s not going to be something that’s going to fit me.
There’s not going to be and it can cause a lot of anxiety. Every single time I did that exercise, my interns walked out in something that looked a lot like what they had come in wearing or was their own personality. And I just think that is what God does. You know, he moves in people to donate the things so that room can be stocked for cases just like that for a woman to be able to feel great and confident and celebratory for her graduation without having to spend the $400.
And so, if you want to be part of that or any volunteering, this is the plug for go to a volunteer 101. Barb said it wasn’t so bad, right?
Barb Evatz: Oh, no. It was very interesting.
Jaime Buxton: Great. It’s one hour once a month and that you can you can find one of those on the website. Sorry for that short commercial break.
Taking the next step and celebrating graduation
Jaime Buxton: I think as we wrap up, Barb, if someone were to tell you, hey, I’m considering volunteering at The City Mission, what would you want them to know?
Barb Evatz: I want them to know the transformational love of God that is present here and that things happen I believe here because of God’s presence and his work that don’t happen in other places. I also want them to know that if they even get a tiny little nudge, they should follow that because any type of serving, no matter how small, God honors, because God is on the throne changing lives still.
Jaime Buxton: Thank you. Anything else you would want our listeners to know from Barb’s amazing volunteer perspective?
Barb Evatz: I’d like to talk about graduation for a minute.
Jaime Buxton: Sure. Let’s do another plug.
Barb Evatz: Yeah. I have been fortunate enough to attend every graduation since I started. And I’ll just tell you quickly that the first graduation was in March of 2025 and it was my birthday. And so I thought, “Oh, I’d never been to graduation before. Do I want to spend my birthday at the City Missions graduation?” And then God said, “Yes, you do.” Because what better place to be than the people that you’ve come to love and to share in their joy.
The building is buzzing when you come in for graduation. The women are all excited. They’re doing their hair. They decorate their caps. They have caps and gowns. It’s a true graduation. It’s a big production. There’s music. There’s a group of singers and dancers.
Jaime Buxton: Yeah. Most of those are City Mission staff. And then they also, you know, there’s always a Laura’s Home choir that the staff oversee. I mean, sometimes I am shocked at the voices in that choir.
Barb Evatz: Yeah. It’s quite a production. And the thing that is most moving is the testimonies because I said the women go from hopelessness to hopefulness. And you see that in their testimonies where they talk about they couldn’t have done it without God. They couldn’t have done it without the staff. There are testimonies for various different people on the staff and it is something that is unique and beautiful and I think you know that my church Christ Church was involved in the graduation last summer.
We prepared the room. So you take this kind of cafeteria looking room and you turn it into a restaurant with tablecloths and flowers and families, children, parents are all invited and it’s just a great celebration. So my church had an opportunity to help. We had 12 people that came that day and we’re doing it again July 31st.
Jaime Buxton: Yay.
Barb Evatz: Yeah. As part of our serve week.
Jaime Buxton: I love that. One I’m glad that you gave your church a shout out. Thank you Christ Church. You’re you’re wonderful partners and I love Barb that we have you now as a liaison keep pushing us to the top of the ministry list at the church. So, thank you for that. But you brought up a great point. We’re always looking for partners whether it’s churches or corporate partners who want to basically adopt graduation.
We like that to be an elevated, special, celebratory meal for our graduates and their families and then to be there and participate. I often say if you come to this, you will always come back to the mission. I mean, because you’re right, you get to see the excitement and just like you said, there is just such a buzz, but also you hear those testimonies and once you hear those, you’re going to be involved with the mission.
I feel like if you can be and when I say that, I don’t want to put pressure on people. You become a prayer partner, you may become a donor, you may become a volunteer, you may become an advocate and you know be a liaison to your church. And so I couldn’t agree more. In fact, we’ve got a men’s graduation coming up and I can’t wait. So anything else you want to add?
Barb Evatz: No, I just thank you for inviting me to be a part of this your podcast and thank you for being a part of the work that you do here. It’s truly a privilege.
Jaime Buxton: Thank you.
Barb Evatz: Truly a privilege to have been invited and I am just so grateful to God for the way I look at my story and how he has woven everything together to put me exactly where he wanted me to be.
Jaime Buxton: Thank you for being so willing to share that. I consider this conversation a huge privilege. Thank you for sharing it with me and with all of the many, many listeners that we have of this podcast.
Getting involved
Jaime Buxton: Thanks for joining us for Not That Different. I hope that this episode resonates with you and makes your heart beat fast. I’m so grateful for our guest today and all that she shared about what God is doing in and through her while she serves at The City Mission. I hope that you will come to find a way to connect with us here at The City Mission if you’re local to Cleveland, Ohio.
But if you’re not, find a spot like us, get involved, and continue to do what God has called you to do, whatever that next step is. We’d love for you to check us out on our website at thecitymission.org and like and subscribe so you won’t miss the next podcast. Thanks.