It's Friday morning as Wyndi White greets a woman and her dog.
She needs food to feed the pup and some laundry detergent, needs many of us don't think twice about. But White knows they're needs those experiencing homelessness face every day.
"Anything we can do to help bridge that gap of their needs, that's what we want to do," White said.
What started as a small ministry outside of White and her husband, Jerry Gorsuch's home, has now grown into a storefront on Brainderd Road, called Doing What We Can Homeless Outreach.
The two work full-time jobs and spend their spare time with the ministry, something the couple felt led to do through their faith.
"We just felt like the Lord weighed it on our hearts to start doing something. So we were praying and asking what to do and little by little we received direction to start ministering to the homeless," White added.
In the one year the non-profit has been operating, the couple says they've seen the homeless community, and needs associated with it, grow. Just last year, the Chattanooga Regional Homeless Coalition said the homeless rate was up by 200-percent.
"It's a very transient community because of where Chattanooga is located at the junction of the interstates, with Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. It's very transient. There's a lot of new people coming into the homeless community all the time. It's actually growing," White said.
The outreach offers meals, showers, bedding, haircuts, pretty much anything someone without a place to call home may need. And if they don't have it, the couple finds a way to make it work.
"We offer food and clothing, we offer hygeine and toiletry items. We offer laundry service. A lot of the homeless people can't afford or have any way to get to a laundry mat," she said.
And it's during those moments of conversation White said, she gets to learn the story behind the person she is helping. A connection that the couple believes is priceless.
"They're our brothers and sisters. Any of us could find ourselves in that position," White said.
Doing What We Can Homeless Outreach is looking for donations and other organizations to partner with. Click HERE to learn how to support their mission.
