Spotlight: John El-Maraghy and Archangel Raphael's Mission

Hi! My name is John El-Maraghy and I am a senior at Rutgers studying Public Health. My father George is a Coptic Orthodox Christian and immigrated here from Egypt in the 70’s seeking a better life, more opportunities, and most importantly religious freedom. My mother Janet, is a 1st generation German-American, born and raised in the heights of Jersey City. Her mother Helen was a farm peasant from Germany who immigrated here after world war two, seeking asylum from the Iron Curtain.

I am the Director of Archangel Raphael’s Mission, an Orthodox inspired community service organization that focuses on alleviating and assisting individuals experiencing homelessness in New Brunswick. We organize daily food runs where we distribute hot, nutritious meals. Although our org is based in the Coptic Church of Alexandria and we recognize the Pope of Alexandria as a leader for all Copts seeking to make a difference in our community, we encourage and seek to work with any people of conscience; regardless of political, philosophical, or religious affiliation.

As someone who has been involved with the homeless population in New Brunswick for some time now, how do you perceive homelessness in this city?

When I first came to Rutgers, I felt pride in the way we incorporated individuals experiencing homelessness into our existing infrastructure. A number of nonprofits worked towards a goal of zero homelessness, NBPD made sure those seeking refuge at the train station were safe, Alexander Library served as a de-facto form of housing and shelter while it was open, and there seemed to be a sort of admission that, although homelessness existed and we weren’t fully equipped to combat it, we could at least open what infrastructure existed to those who could use it.

As time went, I saw this love start to wane. Several actions were taken by the university, local businesses, and the city. Homelessness becomes less of an priority, or even an issue, and now is seen of as more as an eyesore or hindrance to growth. And as this paradigm takes stronger hold, it breeds more and more ignorance, resentment, and apathy towards making meaningful change.

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We are more than happy to build multi-million dollar monuments to business, luxury housing, and administration yet we assume that shelters and training centers should be erected from hopes and dreams.

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What would you say is a solution to the issue of homelessness, either in New Brunswick or globally?

Homelessness is complicated and requires a concerted effort across all levels of our society to make change. We need people to care, a whole lot, about this issue. We need individuals to rise up and commit to helping their neighbors. Businesses need to evaluate their models and incorporate a triple bottom line, which will only help them succeed ultimately. Our university needs to encourage, not discourage, us to move forward with our ideas and to foster pioneering social servants the same way that they encourage and empower leaders in all other sectors.

What do you think are major roadblocks?

One of the biggest roadblocks is the lack of funds as well as the skepticism with which funds are allocated. We are more than happy to build multi-million dollar monuments to business, luxury housing, and administration yet we assume that shelters and training centers should be erected from hopes and dreams. We are more than complacent with quarter-million dollar salaries for businesspeople and professionals, yet assume that people can handle organizing city and county wide social initiatives on their free time.

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It is easy to pass judgment, it is much harder to understand the circumstances that surround [homelessness].

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What is one thing you wish everyone knew about homelessness?

I wish everyone knew how difficult experiencing homelessness was. All to often I see Facebook posts where people complain about people panhandling, or people that have cell phones and are currently experiencing homelessness. There is a complicated economy around despondency that is intimately connected to education, socialization, politics, healthcare and every other facet of our society. It is easy to pass judgment, it is much harder to understand the circumstances that surround such conditions.

How and why did you get involved with Archangel Raphael’s Mission?

So, according to hearsay, before Archangel Raphael’s Mission was the organized effort that it is today, it was a small pay-it-forward act of kindness that a couple kids in my church would do from time to time. It was about two or three guys who would buy a couple pizzas and do a “Midnight Run” once or twice a week. I was brought on about 3 years ago as these gentlemen moved onto more demanding careers. I had just returned from a church retreat where I underwent both a religious and personal transformation when a friend invited me to come serve with them.

Being born in Secaucus and having spent a lot of my life in Jersey City, homelessness was always in sight and in my heart. My parents fostered a social conscience within me: my father always gave me dollar bills to give to those on hard times as a little child. After a while, we all agreed that I could lead the outreach, and as time went on leaders within my church encouraged me to seek out funding for the organization and a name. So, emboldened by all this support, I was able to move forward with so many fantastic people looking to make a difference in our community.

What does a regular night of food donations entail?

The dynamic of the mission is always changing, in the beginning we were making turkey sandwiches on the roof of my car, now we typically receive donations of hot, nutritious food, or prepare it ourselves either at our church facility or at my apartment. From there we meet up around 9 or so at the New Brunswick Train Station. We will usually take a few minutes to make announcements, mingle, and because we are a Christian inspired organization those who choose to pray hold a small prayer where anyone who wishes to join may, anyone who wants to observe may, and anyone who wishes to excuse themselves and do something else is more than welcome to as well. From there we break up into about three groups that cover the train station, north of east until about Hamilton, and George St. until about Bayard St. From there we regroup, share anything we would like, say our thank you’s and our goodbyes. It’s a very simple, easy process and it doesn’t take long at all. No more than an hour or so.

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Being born in Secaucus and having spent a lot of my life in Jersey City, homelessness was always in sight and in my heart.

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Have you had any eye-opening experiences that you want to share?

Without sounding corny there is an eye opening experience almost every day. As word of our mission gets more and more out there we get people who contact us about helping, and it's always fantastic to have people out serving with us. Seeing them make the connection, reach out and engage with people, just like us, who happen to be experiencing difficulty in their life; and for the first time in their life getting a better picture about this world, never ceases to open my eyes as well.

What is your main hope with ARM?

ARM is a service that was inspired and fostered by volunteers and leaders within the Coptic Orthodox Church. As I came more into my role, I sat down to plan with others who have been instrumental in progressing this mission and our faith into the 21st Century (Moe Thomas, Arsanious Hannah, Phillip Saad, Kyrillos Pittman, and Kelsey Lynch) about what our end game would be, and how we would get there. We all agreed, particularly Mr. Thomas, that collaboration was essential. And in that vein, collaboration with people of various faiths and disciplines is a major focus on showing the new progressive attitude of Coptic Orthodox youth.

Our most immediate goals are to secure a 501c3 by the end of this year, fundraise for the purchase and operation of a mobile soup kitchen, help combat the public image around homelessness, and incorporate congregants of the Coptic Church better into our community.

Do you ever struggle with burning out or feeling hopeless? If so, how do you cope with that?

As time goes on and our infrastructure and theory of change develop more and more burning out is less and less of a concern. This is my passion, and I've met so many passionate people along the way (many of which are now volunteers and leaders within ARM) that our administrative support system makes in almost impossible to burn out. We all share the burden, coordinate, cooperate, and communicate to make sure that the real goal (helping others) comes first and stays strong.

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We are adults, we know what the issues are, we should be the ones dictating the agenda in our communities. As students, we should never forget that we are the future.

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Do you see a lot activism on campus concerning this issue? Do you think these movements are effective? What are they missing?

Well, you guys (House the Hub) have really taken up a fantastic torch and I applaud you for all that you do. Unfortunately, I don’t see a lot of activism on campus. In my opinion, the university patronizes us by hosting events to help our community, but they do very little in the way of empowering us to create change. Our agency is removed from the issue. In the past, after the Kent State shootings students unions responded by shutting down universities, nationwide! Think about that, think about that kind of agency-- today our student unions vote on whether or not we can retake classes for a replaced grade. We need to see more activists and activism on campus. We are adults, we know what the issues are, we should be the ones dictating the agenda in our communities. As students, we should never forget that we are the future.

How can students be more involved with the ARM?

I highly encourage all students to get involved with ARM. We are always looking for more leaders and more volunteers from diverse backgrounds. We’ve tried our hardest to make it easy to get involved. You can follow us on Instagram (@ArchangelRaphaelsMission), like and share us on facebook (Archangel Raphael’s Mission) or just sign up on our website Archangelraphaelsmission.org. Our hashtag campaign is #jointheARMy, and I think it's very relevant to what we do. As the ARMy grows, we can combat student agency, wage war on hunger, complacency, and indifference, and together we can marshal change here, and anywhere the ARMy marches.

What are some innovative programs that you think the Rutgers community could provide to the homeless population?

With all the funds we have available and with all the students involved in social good and social services, I find it hard to believe there is any reason Rutgers can’t open, operate, staff, and support a shelter, soup kitchen, and career center. That would be, truly, Revolutionary.