Valentine's Day remixed

If you’ve ever had your heart broken or just found yourself utterly alone on the day devoted to romance, hearts, flowers and chocolate, you know February 14^th is not always a welcome event, and you can probably imagine the sentiments associated with Valentine’s Day at a homeless shelter.

For several years now, however, Women’s Recovery participants at Anna Ogden Hall have celebrated the Day of Love in a BIG way. Here’s why:

1)       Rediscovering femininity. “Many of our ladies, for a variety of reasons, have lost who they are as women,” said Chris Armstrong, Director of Women’s Recovery at Anna Ogden Hall. “They’ve lost their femininity. They’ve lost any appreciation of that. In a lot of their worlds, being a woman is not OK because it’s weak. So they just put their feminine selves aside. One of the goals of our Valentine’s party is to give them back that feminine identity.”

The women dress up in beautiful dresses. They help each other with hair and make-up. “It’s a transforming moment for many of them,” Chris said, “just to feel like a beautiful woman again, and as they re-engage with the beauty of their physical appearance, the beauty of their hearts comes forward, too.”

2)      Healthy male role models. Staff from the Mission, as well as the spouses and sons of female staff, serve as waiters for the event. Andrew, the 12-year-old son of one staff member, escorted women to their tables and held their chairs for them. One woman, Roxanne, broke down in tears after she had been seated, realizing no one had ever done that for her before.

“Often for the first time in their lives, our ladies experience a man who will appreciate their beauty, serve them and care for them, expecting absolutely nothing in return,” Chris said. “A lot of times what they experience outside of AOH is men who just want to use them. In this setting, they experience men who want to serve as Christ serves.”

3)      The ultimate lover. Finally, the Valentine’s event is an opportunity for the ladies to focus on the love Christ has for each of us. He is the one who truly knows us (Psalm 139:1-4), loves us for better or worse, and will never – not ever – forsake us (Psalm 27:10).

For your Maker is your husband—
the Lord Almighty is his name—
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer;
he is called the God of all the earth (Isaiah 54:5).