Tuesday February 2, Fort Lauderdale First Baptist Church was involved with a project called “Love Bags.”

Love Bags are one gallon Ziplock bags filled with necessities such as, socks, deodorant, a toothbrush, soap, lotion, etc. ,and handed out to the homeless.

Participants met at Brew Urban Café in Fort Lauderdale where they discuss what to do for the event.

“The Brew is our meeting location where we learn from the Love Bag leaders about what to do and what to expect before heading out to Holiday Park where we meet up with the homeless. We want to go out there and recognize equality,” said Tom Faw event sponsor.

The opportunity to participate in Love Bags is opened to everybody who is willing to go out and help other people.

“I just wanted to get out there and help people, not because I’m forced to do it, but because it shows what kind of people we are,” said Matthew Parkin, sophomore. “Rather than sitting back and playing with our friends or playing our X-Box, we could be going out of our comfort zone and help those in need with one or two Love Bags.”

Love Bags was started four years ago in Fort Lauderdale by Ryan Alexander, one of the sponsors. It takes place every Tuesday night, 52 weeks a year.

Love Bags are created to show compassion and generosity. Every Tuesday night a different church would also come out and serve dinner, to the homeless people. Those who come for the Love Bags are usually already there for dinner.

Love Bags is a volunteer based project. Without volunteers they would not be able to go out and assist the homeless.

“I believe it is our lifelong project to strive, to be ever-presently involved in the true meaning of Love Bags. Do unto others as you would have done on you,” said Faw.

Many of the volunteers sit down and have conversations with the homeless about what has been going on in their lives. The volunteers do their best to listen intently and be an encouragement, hoping to bring light and joy into their life.

“This not only helps the homeless people but it really makes you feel good about yourself. What a lot of people fail to see is that even though they are homeless, we are all the same. They are just less fortunate than us,” said Parkin.
Felicia Fish, one of the volunteers, believes in order to bridge any ideas of an “us” and “them” gap, they [people] have to see them [homeless] as an equal first.

Fish’s life has been changed drastically after participating with Love Bags for the past two years. “Love Bags has been such a monumental step in the right direction in my life,” said Fish.

The Love Baggers who come out every Tuesday have become a second family to her. She no longer feels any disgust, disgrace or fear towards a homeless person, but instead has been given a feeling of love and compassion and mercy that conquers over the bad judgment that she used to have.

“We have conversations. We give deeply to people to change their lives. We need to break away from everything and recognize what is going on in the world. I believe that Jesus gave us everything so why can’t we try to give something back. We really should fight away negative thoughts. God is not okay with people sleeping on the streets. Why should we be?,” said Alexander.