EMPTY to ENOUGH

This is story about WHY investing in video can help you raise awareness, funding and VOLUNTEERS.

We’ve been working with Room in the Inn-Memphis (RITI) since 2014 when they started growing (after starting at in November of 2009 a tiny congregation, Colonial Cumberland Presbyterian Church). I (Lauren) had done a story on the news about their work expanding (honestly, it was a neighborhood complaint story not a good one!). And from there we sort of be-friended Lisa Anderson, executive director at RITI. She has such a heart for the HOLY HOSPITALITY that they offer to guests each winter night.

Rev. Whitney Brown, creative director at RITI, contacted us in March of 2023 because they were experiencing a rise in families visiting congregational shelter but a drop (50%) in congregations hosting groups each night. So they were turning away dozens each night and that started to add up to more than 1000 missed opportunities.

We knew that it was time for a different kind of storytelling. In the past we had produced “brand story” and “event recap” style pieces for RITI; all of which were being used to raise awareness. But we hadn’t taken people to a night of congregational shelter, we hadn’t followed a church member or shown the impact of helping a family find a home. That’s where the short documentary, EMPTY to ENOUGH came into being.

We started by following guests to St. Paul Baptist Church in Whitehaven. On this particular night, we found ourselves documenting staff turning away almost 20 men outside. They had too many families (women and children) but not enough spaces at the two congregations who were hosting that night. And it was a cold night! I still think about those guests the temps drop at night.

Then we went back to St. Paul’s Baptist Church on a Sunday to document their FULL church, the message in the sermon and the contrast of a full church on Sunday and an empty church on the week nights. But their church isn’t empty…because they are hosting. And that’s the paradox of it all. Many congregations host people each week for services and many sit empty throughout the week.

The goal of this entire project: recruit more congregations to commit to hosting one night a month. Since the screening and release of this documentary, RITI has seen an increase in host congregations AND interested volunteers.

Watch the documentary below and consider getting involved.