Standing in Solidarity

Open letter to our community       Dear Joseph, I haven’t written a letter like this one to you before. This moment in our communities is a hard and painful one. Like many, my heart breaks at the violent and inexcusable death of George Floyd and at the systems that allow this kind of injustice to occur. And like many, I’m looking at myself and the ministry of CityTeam for how we can stand together to make things better. These current events only highlight a difficult reality, that we still live in a world where the color of our skin can determine the way we are valued. And at this moment we see clearly just how deeply our Black brothers and sisters are feeling the pain, fear, and frustration of this reality. And my desire is that we at CityTeam stand in solidarity with one another in this pain, just as Christ came and stood in solidarity to offer love and hope to us all.   In the work we do at CityTeam, we walk closely with people who are marginalized and suffering. Because of this, we see some of the long-term effects of injustice and inequality--hunger, poverty, homelessness, and even hopelessness. And we are proud of our work to provide immediate relief and lasting solutions for the people we meet here. We watch people’s lives improve and change and this is powerful and we thank God for it. We remain committed to this work, because it is just and good. We also want to commit to collaborate with the other agencies and organizations who address other pieces of the conversations around justice. Jesus taught us that we are all wonderfully made and created in God's image. For this reason, He was willing to come to earth, suffer, and even die for us to understand this. He was God’s agent of change for our hearts, and change is what we so desperately need right now so that every member in our community feels equally safe and valued. I'm encouraged now by so many people, companies, churches, and community leaders stepping out and speaking up right now. My prayer is that we keep at it and allow God to use this time of suffering to really live out His love with one another. The Lord has shown us what is good and what is required of us: “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with God.” (Micah 6:8). Grace and peace, Kwinn Tucker Executive Director CityTeam Chester ktucker@cityteam.org   CityTeam Chester 634 Sproul Street, Chester, PA 19013