Far Away From Home... But Not Alone

He remembers serving his country in combat decades ago as a Marine in Vietnam, where he was wounded in action. Although he is only 70 years old, other memories come and go, occasionally vivid but often confused.

Crossroads Ministry received the call from Estes Park Medical Center late Friday afternoon. A dementia patient who managed to drive all the way from Utah had crashed his car about 1:00 a.m. The vehicle was totaled but, miraculously, his injuries were minor.

“Yes,” the Crossroads Ministry program director replied to the hospital caseworker. “Crossroads can help.”

Crossroads Ministry soon ascertained that the kindly man’s nearest relative, a distraught sister back in Utah, lacked financial resources and did not own a car. That meant beginning with the most immediate needs: transportation from the hospital to Twin Owls Motor Lodge, which partners with Crossroads Ministry to provide emergency lodging, as well as some food from the Crossroads Ministry pantry.

With 5:00 p.m. and the weekend fast approaching, efforts turned to quickly mobilizing whatever additional resources might be available for someone stranded far from home but not able to negotiate transportation without close supervision. Personnel from two different state agencies were cooperative and sympathetic, but the only option they could offer at that point was to arrange for a 72-hour evaluation hold by the police.

Crossroads Ministry staff determined together that the kind gentleman could be better served in other ways. While the client recuperated in his motel room, our program director worked with Bob’s Towing to retrieve the man’s personal belongings from his wrecked car – including a priceless small framed 100-year-old photograph of the gentleman’s beloved grandfather. He continued to work with the man’s sister until arrangements could be made to secure assistance from her neighbors.

From time to time on Saturday, the Crossroads Ministry program director stopped by to check in on our guest, while officers from the Estes Park Police Department kindly agreed to our request to help keep a friendly eye out.

In the meantime, two caring souls drove through the night from Utah, arriving in Estes Park at 5:00 a.m. Sunday morning. They resisted Crossroads Ministry’s offer of assistance with gasoline, but graciously accepted our invitation to rest at the motel for a few hours before their long drive home.

Monday morning brought the glad news that the gentleman – who might otherwise have been incarcerated for no reason other than his own inability to adequately care for himself – had safely arrived home, much to the relief of his caring sister.

“You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19, NRSV). What a privilege it is for Crossroads Ministry to return kindness and render vital assistance to a faithful veteran and priceless child of God – one of many lives, both local residents and the occasional sojourner, touched each week by the grace of God and the faithfulness of those who love and serve others in Christ’s name.