Tuesday ended up being a good night for me at Good Shepherd.
And there are two reasons for that assertion — one planned and one spontaneous.
First as I walked to my car, I saw three young men in the Good Shepherd parking lot. As I drove near them, I noticed they were from India. They told me they lived in the apartments nearby and were enjoying a post-dinner stroll.
Indian geography and culture is always one of my favorite subjects, and so I asked my go-to question: “What state?” “Telangana,” they replied, and told me that it used to be part of Andhra Pradesh (known simply as AP to Indiaphiles) before a “bifurcation” in recent years. I told them of my times in Odisha State, my love for rice, dal, idli, and the Indian people in general. I even managed to spell my name out for them — conveniently enough, on a Good Shepherd invitational card.
So far, so good.
Then I continued my evening with a quick drive to nearby Lake Wylie Elementary School where a team of high impact volunteers and ministry-minded staff conducted a Fam X Character Night for about 220 students and parents. People from Good Shepherd prepared dinner, led songs, took part in drama, and even handled some teach on humility: putting others first by giving up what you think you deserve.
Remember: this is the same school where 50 Good Shepherd volunteers have been serving as Reading Buddies since August of 2016.
It was deeply rewarding to see our team leverage that ministry and those connections in order to build godly character in the students of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
And along the way, I got to see more than a few kids I already knews.
So far, so better.