Horizon Man

Outgoing Email Content:

This email is being circulated mainly to all homeless shelters in the Chicagoland metro area.

As the director of Chicago 's oldest homeless shelter, The Godspeed Mission, I am putting out a bulletin to try and find a homeless man in his late forties who goes by the moniker of Horizon Man. We want to find this man and if possible put him on our staff. Horizon Man has some kind of gift we have seen turn lives around. Horizon Man has the ability to sit and talk with our clients one on one for perhaps a half-hour and in that half-hour, the client's life get turned around completely. We have had men in their early fifties who have never had a home, even in their youth, who turned their life around after meeting with Horizon Man for less than an hour.

It seems Horizon Man has the ability to give a person such a vibrant picture of hope and such a clear picture of what the person can do to make changes in life, life changes are made with ease.

We do not know where Horizon Man is from or where he resides when he is not residing in our shelter. If anyone in any of the other shelters knows Horizon Man's whereabouts, can you please pass on the message we would like to speak with him.

Roger P. Neusom

Ex. Dir.

Godspeed Mission

Chicago, IL

Incoming Email Content:

Roger, this is E. B. Dumes over at the Southside Mission. I know about Horizon Man. They guy is beyond real. He checks in here about once every three months. I wish we had the cash to put him on staff, but things have gotten scary bad down here as far as finances go. Everything is day to day as far as keeping the Mission open.

One day we had a guy who had tried to take his life several times. As you know, like your place, we have a lot of people who are SMI. An hour after talking with Horizon Man, one of our most difficult clients was a totally changed human being. I have been doing mission work for decades and this Horizon guy is beyond belief. I have done follow-ups on the people Horizon Man helps and the help is permanent. He is just amazing. I dare say, Horizon Man is a miracle worker of some kind.

I have asked around among the staff and the residents and no one knows anything about Horizon Man other than he appears and disappears on a regular basis.

If we find the guy, we will let you know.

Oh, I was not going to tell you this because you are going to think I'm nuts. We have noticed when Horizon Man checks into our shelter, he never checks out. Like your place, we have an elaborate security procedure here. At 8:00 P.M., the doors are locked. The doors stay locked until 5 A.M. the next morning. We have video cameras monitoring every door, inside and out, 24/7/365. We have checked the video and we can see Horizon Man check into the shelter but we have never seen him checks out the next morning or at any other time. At some point during the night, Horizon Man disappears. Just poof, he is not in the shelter any more.

OK, I'm nuts. Just keep this too yourself. Things are crazy enough in this social service agency the way it is.

E. B. Dumes

Southside Mission

Incoming Email Content:

Roger, I got your email the other day. I apologize for not getting back to you. Our mission is full to overflowing and it is not just the horrid weather. The economy has crushed lives and families here on the eastside. We have more whole families than ever before. We have area churches putting people on cots 7 days a week because we have no room. It's heartbreaking what this economy is doing to people.

We know about Horizon Man. I saw him stay here for a few days and saw him talking with this punk about eighteen years old. The punk was tattooed everywhere, constantly high on meth or whatever else. The kid was totally whacked all the time. Horizon Man sat down next to this kid in the eating area. Within ten minutes the kid was sobbing his heart out. Twenty minutes later the kid was not a punk any more. The kid stayed a few more days and a month later comes back to thank us. The kid was off drugs, had a regular job (go figure), and had rented a small apartment near Niles . The kid says he goes to church every Sunday and has a nice girl as a girlfriend. I have seen the same kind of thing happen with other residents here. With Horizon Man, the residents don't just change, they totally change.

I don't know anything about Horizon Man other than what you probably already know.

Bret Norton

Harvest Rescue Mission

Niles, IL

Incoming Email Content:

Good to hear from you Roger. I missed seeing you at the social services resource meetup a few months ago. We are inundated with clients. We are in a continual crisis because of the influx of the newly unemployed. Our situation is grave at best.

We know the guy you call Horizon Man. Here, we call him No Shadow Man. You won't believe this but the next time you see Horizon Man, watch and see if he casts a shadow. I can tell you before you see it with your own two eyes, the guy does not cast a shadow. We have seen him outdoors in the sun and he does not cast a shadow on the ground at any time. Beyond weird! Way, way, way beyond weird. One resident said Horizon Man, as you call him, does not appear in a mirror. I can also attest to his ability to change lives. I have never seen him heal anyone's body, but I have seen him heal someone's mind and heart just by talking with the person for a few minutes. One of the clients healed by No Shadow Man said the dude talked him out of his issues. It was like No Shadow Man could see inside the client's mind and sort of tricked the client into thinking normally. I cannot explain it. But I did see it.

If you put Shadow Man on the staff, can we share his services? If we see Shadow Man, we will pass on the word that you have an opportunity for him.

Best Regards,

Hempert R. Deardon

Gospel Truth Mission

Chicago IL

This story is fiction and appeared in March, 2010, in the Virtual Church web site at http://www.shepherdscare.net