Season Updates

After a successful first summer at our downtown Ypsilanti HeadQuarters, we are moving back into our regular fall and winter routine! This summer, we served our community members twice a day Monday-Thursday, alongside our catering events and lunches at Liberty Plaza in Ann Arbor. We also hosted many fun events at HQ, one of them being our movie night shown in the picture above!

These meals represent more than just numbers – they provide nourishment, dignity, and hope for our beloved community. Stay tuned for updates on our progress and ways you can get involved. We can't fight hunger without your support!

In October we piloted our Mobile Laundry Trailer at HQ! The shower and laundry trailers have been moved off the property but we are looking forward to launching them both at various locations across Washtenaw County during the winter sheltering season. 

Finally, our Harm Reduction Coordinator, Sheri Wander, led a de-escalation training, and our team is working hard on their intervention skills. We will continue to offer learning opportunities for our staff and volunteers throughout the year.

A huge thank you to our incredible volunteers and dedicated staff who made this season a success!!! Your compassion and hard work are truly inspiring. We're deeply grateful to our generous donors and community partners for making this work possible. Your contributions are making a real difference in the lives of our neighbors.

BRRICK Cinema Club

Join Pastor Anna and the BRRICK Team's Cinema Club for a powerful November 2024 event as we gather to watch and discuss The Cost of Inheritance.

When? Sunday, November 10 at 2 pm

Where? Love Rising Lutheran Church, Detroit

Discussion to follow the screening, Snacks provided, Registration is encouraged but not mandatory

The Cost of Inheritance, an America ReFramed special, explores the complex issue of reparations in the U.S. using a thoughtful approach to history, historical injustices, systemic inequities, and critical dialogue on racial conciliation. Through personal narratives, community inquiries, and scholarly insights, it aims to inspire an understanding of the scope and rationale of the reparations debate.

About the Cinema Club:

The BRRICK Team of the SEMI Synod aims to bring issues of racism and white supremacy to the forefront of conversation through our Cinema Club. BRRICK's Second Sunday Cinema Club meets sporadically in person when the Spirit calls us to an important conversation.

On November 1st we celebrated All Saints Sunday with the community, thanks to all who joined.

Jesus’ words to those surrounding Lazarus after he came out of the tomb were these: Unbind him, and let him go. This is both a promise bursting with resurrecting life and a charge for those of us who follow Jesus. What are the cloths that are binding our neighbors? Loneliness? Grief? Hopelessness? Our witness to the gospel truth calls us to reflect on how we are participating in unbinding our neighbors everyday.

Native American Heritage Month

November is Native American Heritage Month! We take this opportunity to celebrate and connect with the culture, achievements, and traditions of Native Americans, Alaskan Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other affiliated communities.

Every Sunday, at the beginning of our LiftUp service, we begin with these words: As we gather today, we also acknowledge that we are on land that was inhabited before us. In this place, on the beautiful ancestral lands of the Anishinaabe people, the People of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi found plenty. They fished, they planted and hunted, until settlers forced them to leave or disappear. We honor all our Indigenous siblings for their care of the earth, and especially of this land on which we now stand.

This Land Acknowledgment is a reminder to us Lutherans that everything we have has come at a cost. 

At FedUp, we recognize the complicated relationship that white Americans and the Church have with Thanksgiving. We love gathering with family, remembering to be thankful for the gifts we have been given, and who could forget that delicious food?! But because of the history of colonization in our country, we also recognize the National Day of Mourning on November 28th. This day calls for reflection on the harm inflicted upon Indigenous communities, particularly surrounding the arrival of European settlers.

Here's why this day holds deep significance: 

• Honoring Ancestors: It serves as a time to remember and honor the countless Native lives lost to disease, warfare, and displacement.
• Raising Awareness: It aims to educate the broader public about the ongoing struggles Native communities face.
• Promoting Healing and Justice: It provides a platform for Native voices to be heard and heal from harm done to the community.

The National Day of Mourning is a powerful reminder that Thanksgiving, while a cherished tradition for many, carries a legacy of pain and injustice for Indigenous communities. 

We will use this time to educate one another on the reality of Thanksgiving and the harm done. We continue to raise awareness regarding the ongoing struggles and marginalization of Native communities. 

Take this day to learn how you can help and show solidarity and support. Check out this resource!

We have exciting updates! We have a New Volunteer Newsletter that you can sign up for on our website. Just scroll to the bottom of the page and enter your email. We will also need volunteers to run the shower trailer and laundry trailer when it becomes available to the community members at the warming center. Stay tuned! 

It’s that time of year! Our regular meal services on the food truck have ended, and we are beginning to drop meals off for our beloved community members who visit the Daytime Warming Center. This year, the Ypsilanti Freight House will open on Wednesday, Nov 13th. It runs Monday-Thursday from 8 am-6 pm. 

FedUp will serve meals every Tuesday and Wednesday in Ypsilanti. When the Ann Arbor Daytime Warming Center location opens, we will serve lunch on Tuesdays and Wednesdays as well. Our showers will be available in Ypsilanti, while we hope to offer laundry services at both the Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor locations!

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. 

And what does the LORD require of you? 

To act justly and to love mercy 

and walk humbly with your God. 

-Micah 6:8