After meeting and serving in DC for a few months, our small group ("Living in the Tension") decided to head to Philadelphia for a look at inner-city ministries in the city's poorest neighborhoods. We stayed at the Simple Way http://www.thesimpleway.org/) hospitality house for 3 nights. Steve had organized a loose but very kickass schedule for us:

- Philly's baseball game to start off the weekend with fellowship and fun
- Service at Bethel Community Bible Church on East Alleghany Street (just a few blocks away from the Simple Way, in Kensington)
- Service at Broad Street Church in downtown Philly, followed by serving and sharing a meal to a few dozen folks experiencing homelessness
- Helping out at the Simple Way by organizing and inventorying school supplies for neighborhood kids in preparation for the school year
- Picking up heaps of donated groceries from Whole Foods for the Potter Street weekly grocery ministry
- Playing in the park with neighborhood kids (ok, that wasn't planned, but Ashley bought a soccer ball at Walgreens and got the fun started)
- Lending a helping hand at a drug rehab house in another (scary) neighborhood

All in all we had great experiences meeting people with whom we'd not normally come into contact, and it was fun to see how people do things in another place. Brett and Valerie from the Simple Way were wonderful hosts.