Kathleen Grant

Kathleen Grant

I feel very lucky to have found Beacon when I did. I didn’t know in February 2020 when I first walked through the doors at 4 Waldron that the fabric which undergirded my life would be ripped apart a few weeks later, that the institutions that we relied on would disappear, that the family most sacred to us would feel like they were a million miles away, locked in their own homes and fear.

Beacon served as an anchor for us, in more ways than one, during the pandemic. In the early months, when we were untethered from time, the days of the week blurring together, every day a repeat of the one before, we knew it was Sunday because it was the day we attended virtual services at Beacon.

We brought a weeks’ worth of grief and fear, joy and gratitude into our living room each Sunday as we streamed services. We wept as Misa sang, and as John played music that tapped into feelings deep inside of us that we didn’t fully know were there and couldn’t articulate in words. We listened to the wisdom of Jamaine and Tuli, Emilie and Robin, and saw our goodness reflected in their words, stories. This sacred hour each week is restored by faith in myself, and the world around me.

You might have seen these two, John and Julia bopping around the Zoom frame during coffee hour. Almost always in Christmas pajamas, no matter the time of day, no matter the session. I remember one morning Jamaine messaged us and said “Hi John and Julia - I’m so happy to see you!” After reading that, John turned to me with bright, wide eyes and said, “Mommy, I think they like me.” In a year of disconnection, being seen, being known, being loved, isn’t that what we all really yearn for?

I am profoundly grateful for the support Beacon services provided my family during the pandemic. In a time of deep fear, suffering, uncertainty and disconnection, our souls were nourished and our spirits were nurtured each week. I counted on it and it sustained me during this remarkably difficult time. And I know it will continue to help sustain me during times of joy and sorrow, which will surely come again and again, as Beacon will support countless others.