On Monday evening (September 25) Pastor Hoffman and his family had the pleasure of hosting Ken Rogers, member of Setauket Presbyterian Church on Long Island, NY in their home for dinner and an overnight stay. Mr. Rogers (yes, he has heard that one before!) had just completed day one of his 19 day, 277 mile hike from Silver Spring, MD back home to Long Island, NY. Ken is making the trek to raise awareness and funds for a ministry of his church known as Open Door Exchange—a non-profit that works to provide gently used furniture to people transitioning from homelessness to independent living. Due to state restrictions, Open Door Exchange is prohibited from receiving and giving away used mattresses. Each mattress must be purchased new. So, Ken decided to walk 277 miles in order to raise the funds to purchase 277 mattress sets for clients of the ministry. He has made great strides (pun intended) towards his financial goal, but still has a long way to go. If you would like to learn more about Ken and his journey (and Open Door Exchange) feel free to follow the links below. At the least, please add Ken to your prayers as he makes his long journey home.
http://www.newsday.com/long-island/stony-brook-hiker-s-feat-to-raise-money-for-mattresses-1.14070851
http://www.opendoorexchange.org/
https://www.facebook.com/opendoorexchange/