East St. Louis

Going to E. St. Louis tomorrow to meet with Jay Covert. I will be bringing presents for their Christmas party. They give a lot of presents to kids who may not otherwiase get much of anything. Jay has had an interesting life and now leads East Louis Outreach. They have planted a church now in this community and are doing great things. He is a white guy with long hair ministering in an almost all black city. The devestation there is tremendous. Most of it is due to deep seated racial divisions. In short all the white folks moved out and property values fell. The city was mismanaged as well but there are deep wounds due to race.

Jay 's enthusiasm is contagious. He has received awards from the mayor and others. He believes that the city can bounce back and that thousands of folks written off by everyone else can be redeemed. I am looking forward to touring the ministry centers and spending some time hanging out with my friend.