Transformational Tuesdays with Converted Heart CME Church
Interview with Pastor Darryl A. Burton
Twice a month, Pastor Darryl Burton from Converted Heart CME Church hosts “Transformation Tuesday” at the Drop-In Center at Progress Place. Pastor Burton and other volunteers provide free haircuts to the men and women as well as snacks, beverages, and a calming atmosphere.
Read on to learn more about this fantastic program!
Tell us about yourself and your congregation.
PB: Hey, my name is Pastor Darryl A. Burton, the senior pastor of Converted Heart CME Church, right here in Silver Spring, MD. Today is what we call “Transformational Tuesday”. We're here to cut the hair of the men and women at the (Progress Place) shelter and to allow them to feel good about themselves with a fresh haircut.
Share with us your personal connection with Montgomery County.
PB: In 2015 when we launched our ministry, we started out at the Veterans Plaza Civic Center Building holding our services on Sunday. One of the ways we wanted to connect with the community was by giving out socks. Since that time, we've given out nearly 4000 pairs of socks to the men and women who are on the street and who need clothing such as socks and other things. At some point in our journey, we made our way here to Progress Place and we started giving out food because our partners at Manna Food Center in Gaithersburg gave us 300 to 400 lbs. of food a week. We gave out non-perishable foods such as sandwiches, canned goods, fruits, and vegetables. That led to a conversation in 2023 of us have an opportunity to walk through this facility to see what the services we can offer to the residents here at IW Progress Place. One conversation led to another, and we had a wonderful opportunity to talk to Liz (IW Director of Homeless Services). I asked, “what do the clients do on Sunday morning?” And she said, “well, it's funny that you asked. They were looking for a worship service.” I raised my hand, I said I'll volunteer to come and engage and worship here at Interfaith Works, Drop-In Center. And so we've been here since March 2023 engaging and worship helping people to grow spiritually and imparting the word of God so they can understand that anything and everything that they will ever accomplish in life that the Lord would have to be part of that process. It's been a wonderful marriage, if you will, of what we're doing as a community, what we're doing as a church, and seeing our church come together with the Interfaith Works Drop-In Center, and work with the wonderful people here, who have allowed us to come in and to assist in lifting up the spirits of those persons we have engaged with.
What is Transformational Tuesday and where did the idea for this come from?
PB: I think it was probably in September of last year 2023, I felt the Lord speaking to me about the word transformation and at the time when I heard the Lord say transformation, I did not know how or what he wanted me to do in relation to that word. And as we began to engage in the lives of individuals, we were meeting we discovered that we could not really help them with finding a job, we could not help them with housing, but what we could do is help them if they were prepare by giving out some practical things to help them like clothing and socks, but also haircuts! What better way to make a person feel good by allowing them to have a haircut? People can come sit in the chair, tell their story, and share where they come from and what's going on in their life now. So, we started what's called “Transformational Tuesdays” and every other Tuesday we come and cut hair of the men and women hair at the IW Drop-In center and to this date, we have given out over 100 free haircuts to clients here. I feel that Transformational Tuesday is a way of uplifting the spirit, uplifting the person, making them feel good, having a great conversation, and it gives us the opportunity to share our faith with those people that sit in the chair.
What drew you to working with Interfaith Works and the clients at Progress Place?
PB: I think it was probably in September of last year 2023, I felt the Lord speaking to me about the word transformation and at the time when I heard the Lord say transformation, I did not know how or what he wanted me to do in relation to that word. And as we began to engage in the lives of individuals, we were meeting we discovered that we could not really help them with finding a job, we could not help them with housing, but what we could do is help them if they were prepare by giving out some practical things to help them like clothing and socks, but also haircuts! What better way to make a person feel good by allowing them to have a haircut? People can come sit in the chair, tell their story, and share where they come from and what's going on in their life now. So, we started what's called “Transformational Tuesdays” and every other Tuesday we come and cut hair of the men and women hair at the IW Drop-In Center and to this date, we have given out over 100 free haircuts to clients here. I feel that Transformational Tuesday is a way of uplifting the spirit, uplifting the person, making them feel good, having a great conversation, and it gives us the opportunity to share our faith with those people that sit in the chair.
What do you hope is the impact or outcome of these Transformational Tuesdays?
PB: What I'm hoping to happen as we continue to engage in the life of the people, we encounter through Transformation Tuesday is that I am hoping that they can feel better about themselves. Number one, that they can look at themselves in the mirror, and although the situation may not change overnight that they can at least look at themselves in the mirror and know that they are valued, that they are deserving, that they're just not out there with nobody who cares about them. That's why we are here to instill a sense that we do care about the individuals who are with us who are experiencing misfortune, or who have had some bad situations occur in their life. They're here to lift their spirits, so we're hoping that if nothing else, we make that person feel valued and feel worthy about who they are as a human. That is the main thing that we're hoping that this program would do. We're hoping that we can continue this program. We're looking for volunteers to come and help us, those who have some skills in cutting hair, barbers, and barber shops. I've been searching for a person to come and assist us because this is a community and we're part of this community and being part of this community, we are looking for people who have an interest in seeing that people's lives are changed, and that people can feel good about who they are as individuals.
What is the message you would like to share with the broader Montgomery County community?
PB: The message I would like to share with the community is this; do not give up on your dreams. Do not give up on the things you would love to do in life. And although we've had missteps, we made mistakes, we failed at striving towards those dreams, the word of God still encourages us. Jeremiah 29:11, says for I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord plans not to harm you. The Lord is not in the business of trying to harm us, but he is in the business of giving us a future and hope. We're built for that. We're made for that. And so, my hope is that individuals as they come and get their haircut as they go back out these doors and go back into their communities, they can know their dreams and aspirations and know that there's so much more that's in store for them.
How can people get involved in or support the mission of these Transformational Tuesdays?
PB: The one way you can get involved with us is by going to our website, www.convertedheartcme.com, go down to the bottom of the page and you can click on the contact us tab. From there you'll fill out the form with your name, your e-mail address and telephone number and type in how you would like to help. Share with us what skills and talents you have that we may be looking for and we can take it from there. But just go to the website www.convertedheartcme.com, you can also contact the church at 240-360-0977. If you want to get involved, just leave your name and address and we'll make sure that we reach out to you!