CROSSROADS OF MICHIGAN

Crossroads of Michigan is a wonderful organization dedicated to assisting its clients with essential needs among other things. I couldn't be happier to be a part of an organization that does such necessary and important work for individuals in an effortlessly caring and compassionate manner.

This agency has the most dedicated, compassionate and empathetic staff and volunteers I’ve ever seen! They are committed to each client who comes through the doors in need of assistance whatever it may be. They help navigate through all the issues and roadblocks the clients face on a daily basis to help stabilize their lives and give them hope and a hand up!

I've worked with many nonprofits and this has been one of the most dedicated teams I have been a part of during that time. Everyone I have encountered genuinely cares about what they do and it is a great thing to witness.

Crossroads provides fantastic services for those in need, from ID retrieval to clothing to food — and everything they do is marked by empathy, compassion, and a true desire to help people find their footing and makes strides towards a better life.

Have been following Crossroads for several years now and am impressed with the new direction they are taking.

Crossroads works to see its clients as humans rather than numbers or data sets. Our unique approach respects the dignity of every visitor.

Staff members are compassionate and welcoming. Guests are treated with dignity. Volunteers are welcomed and encouraged. Executive leadership is committed to ending poverty. Board members are “ all in” to support the agency with time and financial resources

Crossroads of Michigan is the only soup kitchen open on Sundays in the city of Detroit. Our corporation sponsors the soup kitchen one Sunday each year. This volunteer event is always an eye opener to how many live with food insecurity in the city of Detroit. Crossroads has not only impacted me, but my husband and kids as well, as they always accompany me to this event each year. Crossroads has a clothes closet, food pantry and provides personal hygiene items to clients. They also have a great team who helps clients who are dealing with crises. Their work helps to stabilize clients and help them with the resources they need. The team at Crossroads is the best!

Crossroads is an amazing organization and one I am proud to be associated with. One of the biggest roadblocks to getting out of poverty is a lack of identification, and they work hard to help people secure it. This leads their clients to be able to get assistance, jobs, a home - you cannot put a price on that. The Sunday soup kitchen and summer lunch program are essential to feeding Detroiters and students who do not have access to nutritious meals otherwise.

It has been a pleasure watching this organization grow and continue to do meaningful work in the Detroit Community. The impact is evident and to be celebrated.

What an incredible agency doing amazing work helping others in great need. When I arrived, I was ready to be put to work but had to wait a while because the staff were talking with their clients and listening to their stories. It was beautiful and showed me very quickly who holds the highest priority for Crossroads.

I experienced a sense of loss after retirement. I had been encouraged to donate my time with an organization that provided services to the community. The types of services which needed volunteers included Resource Navigators, food pantry organization/re-stock, clothing room organization and hygiene room re-stock. I felt immediately at home and found a niche in the food pantry and the clothing room. I have been volunteering for almost 2 years at Crossroads and I feel a sense of connection to the clients as well as the staff. It might sound a little corny, but I feel like I am part of an extended family. Crossroads is my first volunteer experience and I am grateful to have been introduced to such a positive experience. Crossroads has provided me with a sense of purpose and belonging.

What a wonderful place.
Aja is a great worker there.
The people that volunteer there are fantastic people.

i love what i do @ crossroads!
i've been volunteering for some years after my neighbor, a former catholic priest & crossroads counselor, told me i should do it :)
i've only experienced one incident with a woman who had mental health issues & the police had to be called. i was really impressed with supervisors' quick handling of the situation & the return to calm & normal.
volunteering makes me feel good about myself & the people we help are so grateful.
it's a circle of life. crossroads is mutually beneficial, for me & our clients!
d. walker

I was looking to use my extra time to serve something larger than my own ends when I found Crossroads of Michigan. I responded to a volunteer advert to work as a server for an annual event, and when the Volunteer Director contacted me to discuss the organization and it’s mission-driven work, I signed up to be a Resource Navigator with a lot of excitement. In this role you speak human-to-human with the people of Detroit facing barriers you’ll likely never understand, and this is a privilege.

What's stopping you and I from being a client in need of Crossroads services is is too much to unpack here, but access to basic needs should not be this difficult for so many... for anyone. You'll work alongside altruistic volunteers, aspiring members of the clergy, social workers, interns, and staff who are devoted to restoring balance. It may be somewhat easy and normal for you to go online, book an appointment for Secretary of State, drive yourself to that appointment, and pay for a replacement license after you lost everything in a house fire that someone else intentionally started. It's really easy to look at people struggling and blame their decisions for their circumstances. But the nature of the systems and structure of our society has left humans behind, seemingly intentionally, and in this organization you will see just how difficult that is to overcome for anyone facing it, because you'll be navigating in their shoes.

This role is not about being someone's savior—it's about being a human with empathy, who listens and provides what you can through Crossroads. When the need goes beyond your capacity or ability to help, you can still be a one person who is hearing and empathizing with someone through an isolating time. Even when you don't think you're helping, you might be.

I love Crossroads of Michigan and their mission, and I encourage anyone interested in fostering a sense of purpose in our community to contact the Volunteer Director. The staff of Crossroads are all amazing, and those working in front directly with clients are INCREDIBLE. They look out for the volunteers and make sure you're covered in every way needed, and I genuinely admire them as people. They'll step in and stop what they're doing simply by seeing a confused look on my face, even when they're in the thick of their own thing in the moment. If you have free time during the week, please go volunteer at Crossroads! If you don't, volunteer for the soup kitchen on Sundays. If you can't spare time, consider sharing some of your resources with Crossroads, so they can then share those resources with Detroiters in need of basic help.

I was volunteering while looking for a job, and now that I have a couple of job offers I'm sad that I won't be able to continue in this role during the week. I feel the responsibility to find others for this volunteer role, so I'm begging readers of this to give it a try. It is something everyone who loves this city should experience, because it's an important part of Detroit.

I recently started volunteering at Crossroads and the experience has been incredible. It has opened my eyes to the lives of many vulnerable people who are in need of assistance. The organization has many resources available that assist clients with strengthening their lives. Crossroads works to train their volunteers to build strong connections with the clients they meet, focusing on the importance of the client/helper relationship. I enjoy volunteering here and would certainly recommend others to serve in any way they can at Crossroads.

I have been volunteering at Crossroads for two years and it is an amazing place. It is a family type of atmosphere, the staff is all really nice, top notch people, and the clients are a joy to work with, so if you like to help people and be in an environment where everyone has compassion for people who are less fortunate, look no further than Crossroads, you will love it.

Erik H

Volunteering at Crossroads was an extremely meaningful experience. I met incredible people, and felt I truly had the opportunity to make an impact. My volunteer role as a resource counselor allowed me to directly support members of the Detroit community during a flexible, weekly commitment.

Thanks for the opportunity to volunteer for the Sunday Soup Kitchen. I was impressed with the kindness and caring of the volunteer leaders on our Sunday. I felt that the patrons of the Soup Kitchen needed and appreciated the service. I would be happy to volunteer again.

After nearly 45 years, in January I retired as Chief Administrative Officer for a large law firm with 7 offices in 3 states. Upon my retirement, I immediately volunteered my time to Crossroads of Michigan, a community outreach organization located in the city of Detroit. Crossroads has a building full of hard-working, concerned individuals - both employees and volunteers -that truly care about those that come to us for assistance. They really listen to our guests and do everything possible to provide them with all of the resources that we have available. In addition, Crossroads has a visionary leader who is devoted to expanding our current programs as well as developing new programs as the need presents itself. I am extremely glad I chose Crossroads as the non-profit to which I will devote my time and with which I will share my business experience and my heart.

I have really enjoyed my time volunteering at Crossroads. Everyone needs a hand at sometime and it's great to be a part of the hand that Crossroads offers to its community. I have found the work to be meaningful, rewarding, and deeply impactful. Everyone here is kind and appreciative and always willing to help.

You can work face-to-face with the community or work a little more behind the scenes if you like.

Crossroads of Michigan helps people obtain material needs, counseling, and advocacy to any person in need. It is one of the most special places I have been a part of, they truly change lives!

Crossroads has a stellar reputation among Detroit non-profits as being a strong community support organization for the last 51 years. Our response to the community we serve is how can we help in the journey to stability.

I have been able to spend some time at Crossroads of Michigan this year, and I have been very impressed with their dedication and the work they do in Detroit. It's not an easy thing to run a non-profit, however Crossroads has continued to do great work as we've transitioned to post pandemic. I was able to volunteer earlier this summer, where I made BBQ chicken and helped to package up meals for the guests to come and eat.

I'm excited to be able to get back and continue to spend my volunteer time helping out at Crossroads!

Crossroads was instrumental in helping my patient obtain vital records. Ms. Lucy Avery-Walk went beyond expectations to help my patient in his time of need. Accolades go out to Crossroads Staff and the positive impact the agency is having on our community. Thanks Lucy!
Elizabeth Smith, LMSW

I'm so happy to be part of the leadership team at this organization. Proud to be one of the only nonprofits in Detroit to help those in need with identification documents.

I first heard about Crossroads when someone from there spoke at St. Alphonsus Church, telling of the work they did and asking for volunteers. I volunteered and that was one of the best experiences I've ever had. I began in the "old" building and then moved to the new structure and continued there until I had to leave to take care of my husband, following his spinal cord injury. Crossroads is still in my heart and prayers. Lynn Laidlaw

I am a volunteer at Cross Roads of Michigan and I have seen first the great work they do for their clients. The focus of the service I provide to the clients is to help them obtain the necessary identification documents they require to obtain employment, housing, and medical care. These documents are critical to these people in order to improve their lives.
The staff at Crossroads are dedicated to the mission of the organization and to service the people that come to them for help. Crossroads of Michigan compassionately and effectively serves a critical need in the community.

Before Covid -19 our group from SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish volunteered one Sunday a year to make meals for the homeless. The place sanitizes everything, from table to chairs, to countertops and gloves and aprons are mandatory. This ensured that persons who come in to participate of the meals are served in a healthy environment with healthy food. At 12 noon, the customer would start to come in. More than 600 meals are usually served. The process of serving and distributing food is so smooth, and all are served with no hitched. Impressive! I said the first time I witnessed it. This charity needs more support to help the homeless persons they so earnestly serve. God bless all the volunteers and the administrators.

When I first started to volunteer at Crossroads the staff made me feel welcome and comfortable. As I continued my volunteer work I saw that the Crossroads staff were very welcoming and gave comfort and help to their many clients. I helped with the parenting classes. The parents we served were very grateful for the child care information, diapers, clothing and kind words that we provided. The Crossroads leadership, staff and volunteers do an excellent job of meeting the needs of the people they serve.

Great place to work and volunteer! They treat clients fairly and compassionately...offers services imperative to the community

When I was in my early 30s in 1979, at the end of a time of deep depression in my life, I was encouraged by a friend at church to volunteer at Crossroads. From what I already knew about the Rev. Jim McLaren, I was already intimidated by his quiet but commanding voice and his high expectations of volunteers. Moreover, i was not sure I wanted that much close proximity to men and women whose lives were coming apart at the seams.
Nevertheless, I called, and to my amazement, it was Jim who answered. When I gave my name, he said, "You're the guy who came to the first meeting in 1971 but never came back." I was gobsmacked, but offered my services nonetheless. I was assigned to answer the phone on my volunteer days that summer, to manage the front door, to sweep up at the end of the day, and to clean the unisex toilet. But it was a start.
I was so moved by the variety of volunteers and staff and their cheerful, unintimidating commitment to the work--where I had imagined unseamed people, they saw beloved children of the One God, and got at meeting the needs they could.
I went on to to take the volunteer training, to serve once or twice a week for the next eight years, and to serve on the Board. When I moved slightly north, I also found myself able to serve in Oakland County's South Oakland Shelter program for 21 years as a volunteer shelter coordinator at my church.
In short, Crossroads, Father Jim, the amazing volunteers and permanent staff AND the many clients, by the Grace of God, changed my life.

It was very gratifying to volunteer to work with my family and others in the soup kitchen on Sunday in Detroit serving the less fortunate and homeless people. Having conversations and sharing experiences with the people gave me a good feeling and great appreciation for the positive outlook on their life that they had. It inspired me to continue serving other.

My husband and I have been contributing to crossroads for over 40 years. They have been feeding and serving people for a very long time. Our church and women’s guild donate regularly and collect food and supplies for them. Each July 4 weekend we serve lunch on Sunday. There are many opportunities to assist them in caring for others. They are the best!

Our church works at CROSSROADS once/year. This is a wonderful organization.. It feeds the truly hungry. Once a young couple came with their newborn infant. In addition to giving the young couple food, they also included formula for the newborn.

I have volunteered at Crossroads weekly soup kitchen,Thanksgiving Dinner, and Answering phones, scheduling appointments some Saturdays. One Saturday I was working and a young man called and said he had been left at a rest area on Interstate 75 by a truck driver he was helping deliver load. A kind person gave him a ride to a restaurant where someone recommended he call Crossroads for help. He called and received a bus ticket and some travel money to get home. Once getting home he sent Crossroads a donation. This is an organization that goes above and beyond to assist and improve the lives of All people. I have learned so much from volunteering there. I never knew the difficulties in obtaining a birth certificate especially if you were born in a single family home. My experience as a volunteer and donor has educated me so much on the struggles of every day life for those not as fortunate as I am. Crossroads is the non profit that truly exceeds all expectations.

Wonderful and caring staff. I volunteered when I was laid off from my job. They hired me part time until I was able to find full time work. I was so moved by their work till I make a monthly donation.

They do wonderful work for the people of the area.

I admire the efforts of this organization to reach out to the needy in the Detroit community and help with meals and other basics. I have assisted in meal preparation and serving with my church group and I wonder how the homeless and needy would make it without Crossroads of Michigan.

Crossroads is wonderful social service outreach organization that provides assistance to many people in need. Basic needs such as food, clothing, and hygiene items. Financial assistance is given to help pay for birth certificates and identification to apply for housing.It is the only soup kitchen in Detroit open on Sundays and there is a summer lunch program for children. Advocacy is given by dedicated volunteers workers who are trained in house by caring team of staff members. This non profit is committed to helping their clients get on their feet in times of need.

Crossroads is amazing, helping over 13,000 individuals in need every year in Detroit.

Crossroads of Michigan is an incredible charity that gives the Detroit community a world class resource to better themselves and their position in life. Their impact on the lives of their clients is second to none.

Crossroads is a very down to earth organization that has been(since Nov.1971) and will continue to help all sort and kinds of folks from all ages in many aspects of their lives.Great to be involved with it as it just plain does good work!

Fritz

We have volunteered at crossroads a numbers of times and have always been impressed by how they serve the community.

I’ve been volunteering at crossroads for about 23 years. I do at least one soup kitchen per year with Comerica Bank. Generally everyone who comes to crossroads with us loves volunteering there and wants to come back and help support this great charity. They do such great work to help support with not a handout but a handup to those in need.
I am also a past board President.

This company is very discriminative when it comes to getting employment. They will offer you a position to answer phones when you have experience with a degree to match. Then the individual who still in school a position to be a counselor because their younger.

My late husband was an Episcopal priest whose life had one singular focus: to make the world a better place for everyone. To him, the mission of Crossroads embodied that goal. After he retired from parish work, he became a volunteer counselor, working directly with clients. His experiences led him to believe that Crossroads is the purest form of church, where the teachings of Jesus are lived every day. I couldn’t agree more.

I have worked a soup kitchen with Crossroads for the last three years. They recruited local chefs to make the lunch. The food was delicious and plentiful. The Crossroads staff is tuned into the needs of the community they serve and extremely thoughtful and caring. I feel privileged to volunteer with them.

They do an amazing job with feeding the hungry, giving each individual respect, they are a wonderful nonprofit and sister is amazing.

I helped to serve lunch in soup kitchen on West Grand Blvd in Detroit in September. It gave me a great feeling of accomplishment helping to serve some that were less fortunate than myself. I met and talked with some very interesting and intelligent people. Serving others helps to give one a true and real perspective of life.

As a volunteer, I have been very impressed with the caring staff , clean facility and well prepared and served nutritional meals on Sunday.

I tell everyone about Crossroads and the good work they do helping people. I have worked a few Sundays for years, it is very rewarding. I bring clothes from my family and friends and we watch for the want of the month to know what to donate.

Great organization, our family serves every year at their soup kitchen to feed the hungry and to provide for those in need.

My experience at Crossroads as a volunteer crisis counselor has been beyond my expectations. The fulfillment I get from helping someone genuinely in desperate need, with nowhere to turn or none to turn to, is beyond humbling and gratifying. I honestly feel blessed to be able to help out there in any way I can.

I have not worked with a Non-profit who cares so much for their clients as Crossroads of Michigan. Each staff member and volunteer goes above and beyond their role to make sure their clients are accommodated for. Crossroads of Michigan deserves extraordinary recognition.

Crossroads offers great service to the community at the soup kitchen on West Grand Blvd ! I helped out and it was an amazing experience. I worked with a team to make the food and then served it! What a great way to give back and help people in need. I am proud to be a supporter of Crossroads !

Mark Fox

Grossroads is doing what many nonprofits "wish" could happen.
The tightly run support programs reach many different levels of need through their gifted and committed volunteer base. Their volunteers come from a wide socioeconomic
swath and provide "hands on and hand up" support to needy quests.
This can range from excellent meal offerings to personal recovery of I.D.
cards, employment assistance to cooking and nutrition classes. The goal is teaching how to "fish" and become independent. From the excellent physical facility to the gifted empathic staff, they "walk they talk"

Compassion and respect for human dignity inform the service of everyone who works at Crossroads from the Executive Director, dedicated and hardworking staff, students and interns and the caring corps of volunteers. Crossroads is an agency that uses its resources effectively and wisely. Programs include material aid such as emergency food, clothing personal and baby items, as well as counseling and employment services, parenting education, referral and assistance obtaining ID and health insurance among other benefits. For more than four decades people in Detroit in crises have turned to Crossroads and the community of Southeast Michigan has supported its critical work.

Crossroads is an exceptionally fine non-profit in the city of Detroit. A few years ago, I spent several weeks volunteering there while I had a sabbatical from my Church assignment. I learned a great deal about the needs of the City of Detroit and how best to meet those needs In a respectful and appropriate,anger.
I was very impressed at the professionalism of the staff and the passion with which they sought to meet the needs of the people who came to Crossroads for needed supplies and support.

Their Sunday soup kitchen is a wonder to behold. They serve hundreds every Sunday thanks to Sister Liz and her amazing dedication. She inspires church and community volunteers make this happen.

Crossroads has been helping people for nearly 47 years with love and caring for whomever asked for assistance. We have also partnered with many other social service organizations to get the best for our clients. The original philosophy of giving a hand up has really never changed as we have helped thousands of wonderful and needy clients. Crossroads is also much abut our volunteers thru all of the years making the consultations turn into helping resolve problems, etc.

Long time volunteer

Crossroads is there to help people with basic needs, whether it is helping people get birth certificates and picture IDs (you need a birth certificate and a social security card to get a picture ID and you need a picture ID to get a birth certificate and a social security card), emergency food, clothing, two $1.75 bus tickets for a doctor's appointment or a job interview, or a job lead, the interaction with the clients gives the clients a chance for someone to listen to them. The hands-on approach used by Crossroads volunteers lets the client know they are important.

Crossroads does a great job of feeding those in need especially on Sundays's when there is no other source for meals in thew area.

This incredibly successful and creative organization is always looking for new ways to help the disadvantaged. They have developed volunteer resources so they can venture into new roles with the manpower to get things done. They treat their clients with respect, and help them in any way they can, or refer them to places that can help them.

I have volunteered for several years. I see how positive and caring the staff is. Crossroads is a very important resource for the clients who are in need of so much help.

Our volunteer group at St Owen's has had a great experience working with the staff
at CROSSROADS. Our meal prep with their guidance has worked out well. ..and to be able
to visit with the guests is a joyful time. Cheers for CROSSROADS. Keep up the good work!

Great non-profit that takes is the only large Sunday Soup Kitchen in operation in Detroit and depends completely on volunteers to bring and serve the meal. What a brilliant way to create meaningful opportunities to care for each other. They also are dedicated to helping their clients get the help they need by doing extensive interviews and really walking with people in crisis. Plus, they operate on a small budget. An excellent agency dedicated to helping those who are struggling with basic needs.

I have been a volunteer at Crossroads for many years. I have the privilege of seeing clients weekly to assist with food, clothing, ID, transportation costs and many other services.
Before Obama Care we were often the only organization that helped with medications
and hospital social workers made sure their patients had our number so we could assist them.

Identification is something most of us take for granted but for those who never had ID trying
to get ID post 911 can be a very frustrating experience. They need birth certificates and other forms of ID to get ID! We help them thru the maize and pay for their birth certificates and ID if they have no means to pay for it themselves.

We have a Parenting program for young parents and their children and assist not only with education but also diapers and formula. We also have a Crossroads Employment Office for those ready and able to work where they receive assistance with job leads and resume's
and bus tickets to get those interviews and jobs.

Those we serve are very grateful for our help. One gentleman was so thankful for the food,
and services we provided he thanked God right there for sending him to me that day. I will never forget that for those with so little we are a lifeline for them.

One of the most rewarding experiences I've had is serving lunch at Crossroads twice a year with my church. They serve such a needy population! They are well-run, too. I will be helping them as long as I can!

The community in which we participate to prepare a Palm Sunday meal at Crossroads has morphed from a church-based circle of volunteers to an eclectic gathering of old church friends, a group of very ardent volunteers from Starbucks locations around the metro area, family and friends. Many of us were brought to this place of love and fellowship by our beloved and dearly departed Harry T. Cook, who was our Spartacus in championing Crossroads and the very important work it does every day. Crossroads has made an enormous impact in all of our lives, and we are blessed to be able to share and spread their mission.

I visited Crossroads on behalf of my company in order to determine if we wanted to donate. I was pleasantly surprised at the work they are doing. They listen to their community and determine the needs and the best way to help. I was shocked to learn that they are the only soup kitchen open on Sundays! Really?! The staff are so caring and helpful. Keep up the great work!

Very caring, getting Detroiters back on their feet with everything from driver's licenses to bus passes, to clothing for job interviews. And soup kitchen every weekend as well !

Countless times I have seen Crossroads have a lasting impact on the life of deserving clients. It can be serving a hot meal on Sunday, helping with bus fare for a new job or providing documentation that allows a client to receive needed services.

The first time I volunteered for Crossroads with my church, I was about 10 or 11. I remained safely ensconced behind the counter, ladling steaming tomato barley soup into to-go sytrofoam containers. I could smile through the small window at the visitors, but I got a lump in my throat thinking about going "out there" - at the time, the cafeteria was about 25 wrought iron tables. Crossroads was my first face-to-face encounter with homelessness in Detroit, as a young suburbanite, our guests were very different from me. What could I have in common with them? I was young and intimidated, but under the guidance of Sister Liz and my pastor, the late Rev. Harry T. Cook, I knew not to be scared, either. There was nothing wrong with our guests, they would be happy to chat with me. Back in the year 2007, I was too shy, but when our church returned the following year, I felt more confident. And, I was shocked that I even recognized some of our guests from last year. At 12, it didn't stick that I recognized them because of the cycle of poverty and injustice manifested in our community; I just knew they still needed a helping hand. I ventured out, under the guise of washing down some tables, and made small talk with a guest. It wasn't any harder than talking to a stranger is under any other circumstance. At 13, I talked to a few more guests during our annual meal. As the years have gone by, I spend increasing lengths of time out in the dining room with guests of Crossroads. Crossroads relocated into a larger facility with a larger dining room and kitchen. Our church, since closed, still convenes former parishioners to assemble our annual meal. Over 18 meals, in 18 years, I've met the most loving, intelligent, optimistic members of our community who benefit from the many services Crossroads provides, including but not limited to hot meals. I've seen the good Crossroads provides our community, and every year I hope there are fewer neighbors in need of their services. Not only has 18 years of volunteering annually with Crossroads helped me to humanize my destitute brothers and sisters, but it's helped me recognize that economic insecurity, food security, and poverty, can be just one bad break around the corner for any of us, one diagnosis away, one letter from the bank can make us more dependent on each other. And Crossroads professional and volunteer services will be there for anyone whose situation changes and needs that help. I hope that as members of our community, more supporters, through time or finances, help Crossroads in this mission.

Crossroads is a great place to help serve the most needy in our community. Whether you are helping prepare or serve meals at the Soup Kitchen or seeing a client for the first time as a counselor, you are sure to leave feeling like you've made a difference in an efficient and organized way.