Paul Schmitz - Shower Up Nashville - Professional Perspectives

https://www.showerup.org/   Paul and his wife, Rhonda, launched ShowerUp in the fall of 2016.  When we first thought about a mobile shower unit for the homeless, we wondered if it was even possible. Our family has spent years working with the homeless (first in Wichita, KS and then in Nashville) mostly providing meals, clothing, sleeping bags, backpacks, etc. We have made some wonderful friendships and had the privilege of seeing lives transformed over the years. We always had the perspective that whatever we were providing was simply a "handshake" that would eventually lead to a relationship. The relationship is so important because without it there can be no potential for discipleship.    We always wondered, though, what need wasn't being met. What if we could start the relationship with a symbolic "hug"? If handing someone a meal is a "handshake", then providing them with a shower must certainly be a "hug"! That became part of our core values.   HumanityRising.org