Watch

Serving the Homeless Population from the Feet Up

Creator:
Published:
January 16, 2024
April 6, 2020
These volunteers add a personal touch by foot washing the homeless population; watch more here.|These volunteers add a personal touch by foot washing the homeless population; watch more here.

Gary Short recognizes the power of personal interaction, especially when it comes to acts of service. His organization offers free foot care and shoes to people in his community who are homeless and working in poverty.

"I just feel the one-on-one interaction with the people, providing something so necessary, that I receive so much from — that's my ministry. That is reaching out to these people and yet receiving more than I give."

Video Transcript

Meet Gary: Foot washer

Gary Short: I think when Christ washed the feet of the disciples, that was so symbolic of service — of, in fact, lowering yourself to the lowest level possible, which is when the feet touch the ground. It's certainly central to what we do, that we are serving people from the ground up.

Foot Care for the Souls gives free pedicures, first aid, and shoes to the homeless and working poor.

So, this is my 25th year of doing foot care for the homeless in greater Cincinnati.

[Speaking on the phone] Yeah, yeah. I'll be right down. Yep.

So, the breakfast starts about 7:00 AM here. So, we come here about 6:30 and get set up for foot care. We sign up our clients in the dining hall.

So when they get a card in the dining hall, then that stays with them. They get in the lobby, they're all looking for number one, two, and three to see who goes first. So, I don't start numbering until five. (laughs) They're still looking for one through four.

A lot of our clients are just on their feet all day. They're shuffling from one location to another, whether it's looking for the next meal or whatever shelter that they may need for that night. And it's wet, it's cold. And when the feet get wet, that's when they get the most stress on them. One lady came in one time, and she had lost all the feeling in her foot. We referred her directly to the hospital, and she came back two or three weeks later on crutches, and she says, "You saved my foot. There was a situation that was going on that the doctor said if I had continued to ignore it, then I probably would have lost my foot."

Speaker: How are you feeling now?

Client: Good. Yeah, I had a big corn there. It hurt bad, she fixed it.

Gary: Foot care and service, in general, is a blessing because just like shaking somebody's hand, that's a very personal thing. When you have someone's feet in your lap, it doesn't get much more personal than that.

[Speaking to a client] You'll come back and see us? All right.

I just feel the one-on-one interaction with the people, providing something so necessary, that I receive so much from — that's my ministry, that is reaching out to these people and yet receiving more than I give.

Creators:
Grotto
Published:
January 16, 2024
April 6, 2020
On a related note...
Meet the Church's First African-American Cardinal

Meet the Church's First African-American Cardinal

Grotto Shares

8 Factors to Consider in Choosing a Service Year

8 Factors to Consider in Choosing a Service Year

Marye Colleen Larme

Why Thoughts and Prayers Do Make a Difference

Why Thoughts and Prayers Do Make a Difference

Emily Mae Mentock

Finding Joy & Healing Through Photography

Finding Joy & Healing Through Photography

Grotto

What My Mentors Taught Me About God

What My Mentors Taught Me About God

Gabriella Patti

First-Hand Report of Humanitarian Crisis at the Border

First-Hand Report of Humanitarian Crisis at the Border

Grotto

Finding Faith When We’ve Lost Hope

Finding Faith When We’ve Lost Hope

Tim O'Malley

The Sacred Gray Area

The Sacred Gray Area

Sarah Adams

Meet the Woman Who Holds Opioid-Addicted Babies

Meet the Woman Who Holds Opioid-Addicted Babies

Maria Walley

7 Recipes for Meal Trains with Any Dietary Restriction

7 Recipes for Meal Trains with Any Dietary Restriction

Maria Walley

What Tony Reali's Monologue Taught Me About Grief

What Tony Reali's Monologue Taught Me About Grief

Josh Flynt

The Magic of Small Lights in the Darkness

The Magic of Small Lights in the Darkness

Katie Ekblad Traver

What the First Year of Marriage is Really Like

What the First Year of Marriage is Really Like

Krista Steele

The Power of an Enlightenment Experience

The Power of an Enlightenment Experience

Marye Colleen Larme

5 Lessons Learned in 5 Years of Marriage

5 Lessons Learned in 5 Years of Marriage

Matt Paolelli

A Commitment to Radical Kinship

A Commitment to Radical Kinship

Stephanie DePrez

Cafe Offers Healing For Recovering Women

Cafe Offers Healing For Recovering Women

Grotto

Memento Mori: How Remembering Our Death Helps Us Live

Memento Mori: How Remembering Our Death Helps Us Live

Jacqueline Rose

Quick Guide to Fasting and Abstinence During Lent

Quick Guide to Fasting and Abstinence During Lent

Lisa Greey Lytwyn

Bone Voyage: A Relic's Journey

Bone Voyage: A Relic's Journey

Grotto

newsletter

We’d love to be pals.

Sign up for our newsletter, and we’ll meet you in your inbox each week.