By Paula Day

As an October drizzle falls and hints of cold weather creep into the bones and consciousness of Atlantans, shelters are gearing up for another season of ministry to the homeless.

For Katie Bashor, the weeks before the opening of night shelters at Central Presbyterian Church and the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in downtown are filled with personal questions.

"Am I doing the right thing spending my time this way?" "Do my efforts make any difference?" "Wherever will I get enough volunteers to man the shelters?" "Will I have enough (volunteers) to stay through the night?"

Mrs. Bashor, who coordinates volunteers for the two shelters, recalls Jesus' words, "The poor you have always with you." But discouragement still takes occasional punches at her spirit.

Then it happens, an unexpected epiphany. Shopping at a sportswear outlet for a birthday gift recently, she was accosted by a worker balancing flattened cardboard boxes on his head.

"Hey, don't you know me?" a voice from beneath the boxes called out. "I know you from the shelter. I'm one of the guys who stayed there last winter. I'm doing great! I have a place to stay." Later she heard him recounting their meeting to a fellow employee who had also stayed at the shelter.

Mrs. Bashor said she could almost hear a voice saying, "Yes, Katie, you're doing the right thing. You're in the right place and next time have a little more faith."

The coming season will be Mrs. Bashor's 10th; her husband, Mark, has been involved in shelter ministry for 13 years and directs the two shelters. Husband and wife are both volunteers themselves.

The two shelters for men will open Nov. 1 and volunteers are needed each night until the cold weather season ends March 31. Central Presbyterian houses 65 men; the Shrine has room for 20. Four over-night volunteers for each shelter are needed from 6 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. To reassure novice volunteers, Mrs. Bashor said experienced people are on hand to orient newcomers and a core staff member works as a street crew, screening the guests each evening.

The 18 Catholic parishes whose members helped regularly last season made up 60 percent of the shelters' volunteers, according to Mrs. Bashor. Although the Bashors may have anxious moments wondering if there will be enough volunteers, occasionally they get an insight into what the ministry means to the men finding haven at the shelters.

Mark Bashor recounts an incident at the sunrise service in the Georgia Plaza next to the Shrine last Easter. Father John Adamski, pastor, had just spoken of Christ's resurrection and asked those gathered in the plaza if anyone had anything to say about the meaning of the resurrection for them.

One of the guests at the shelter, which had just closed for the season, spoke up. He said he didn't yet know what the resurrection of Christ meant, but he did know what resurrection meant. He had been dead two years ago when he came to the shelter and he was brought back to life.

Randy is another person who has experienced resurrection. He had been homeless four years when he met the Bashors seven years ago. On the spur of the moment, when Randy was at risk in a temporary job situation and had no place to stay, they invited him to stay in their home. He lived with the Bashors for nine months. Now settled in his own place and working steadily, he is considered part of the family and spends holidays with them.

The shelters offer a warm, dry place to sleep, hot meals and showers. One night a week, guests receive health and foot care from volunteer health care professionals as well as the regular staff. Necessities for these services, such as medicines, toilet tissue, bath and laundry soap are donated.

The men have a chance to exercise, using Central's gym for basketball. Each Sunday evening priests, deacons and ministers from local churches take turns offering nondenominational worship services which the men are free to attend.

Mrs. Bashor frequently witnesses unexpected signs of God's providence. She recalls cleaning up after what had been a skimpy meal last winter. As she took out the trash she was met by a folk group from one of the Catholic parishes who come once a month to the shelter to entertain.

"Oh no, what am I going to feed them?" thought Mrs. Bashor, who knew about their appetites from past experience.

No sooner had one of the young people called out, "Hope there's food upstairs, we're starved," when a woman from an Atlanta Jewish shelter walked up with a steaming pan of lasagna.

"We have this extra pan and I wondered if you could use it," she explained. Katie Bashor thought, "From my mouth to God's ear to the Jewish shelter back to the Presbyterian shelter to feed Catholics!" God was providing not only for the homeless, but for those doing His work, she concluded.

Persons wishing to volunteer for ministry at the shelter during the coming months should call Katie or Mark Bashor at 373-8486 or 373-4285.