Two long-haired men wearing black leather jackets walk through the doorway of a church. A woman dressed the same way enters with them. Their worn faces and dirty clothes show signs of difficult times. As they enter the spacious room, volunteers greet them and offer them warm pasta, Kool-aid, and tapioca pudding. These are three of the nearly 20 needy youth who attended the "love drop-in" that evening.

The love drop-in is a ministry to homeless youth 21 and younger. Youth can find the love drop-in open from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays. College students volunteer to help t with the ministry. They arrive at 3 p.m. to set up tables, prepare food and organize. Then they pray together, preparing their hearts for opportunities to witness. Every time the love drop-in opens, the staff takes a fresh perspective on the ministry. "We don't know what's going to happen today, haven't got a clue," the Rev. Krack tells the volunteers just before prayer.

At 3 p.m., the doors open, and youth begin pouring in. "A lot of the kids are runaways," one volunteer said. As they walk in, volunteers greet them kindly and serve them food. A stack of Bibles lies on the table next to the food. The volunteers encourage the drop-ins to stay and eat. A man walks in with scruffy hair and dirty clothes; he's obviously older than 21. David Goshorn, the ministry director, walks up to him to greet him. "Hi, Clifford!" he says. Clifford, a regular, walks in with a smile as he talks to Goshorn and is served food. Later on, Raven walks in. His fluorescent orange-yellow hair contrasts with his black clothes and purple pullover. Raven has a reason for being in Portland: "to be as far away from my family as possible." His parents are divorced. Raven is also a homosexual.

Another frequent drop-in is Jeff. Jeff was kicked out of college for not paying his tuition and lived on the streets. He had also cheated on his wife, who would not forgive him. Last Tuesday, Jeff came in with his wife to ask for prayer. His wife asked God for power to help her forgive Jeff and release her from her burden.

The importance of prayer is stressed highly. In addition to preparing their hearts with prayer before the drop-in opens, volunteers sometimes go to another room to pray for recent visitors. The street people are given an immense amount of time and compassion.

Lina Tablanza, a volunteer from Multnomah Bible College, said that she does the ministry because she can be a friend to people who don't trust anybody. "You have to earn their trust," she said. "God has something real to offer them."

Kendra Elenberger, another volunteer from Multnomah, is also passionate about the ministry. "I really enjoy hanging out with [the youth] and getting to know them," she said. For Tablanza and Elenberger, this kind of ministry is new. "I grew up in a town where you don't ever see this culture, except on TV," Elenberger said. She also said this ministry has helped her spiritually: "It seems kind of ironic, but I'm learning more about God by getting to know them."

In addition to ministering to the youth indoors, volunteers also participate in publicizing the love drop-in. Volunteers walk to Pioneer Square to talk with homeless and needy youth and give them directions. Then they go to other parks, such as "Paranoia Park," a park known for drugs. Many of the street kids have already heard of the love drop-in, but receiving one-on-one attention encourages them to go.

At 6 p.m. the volunteers wipe down tables and put everything away. Everybody pitches in. Then they get together for a brief discussion on any events that took place and a final prayer. After a hard day of serving others, the volunteers are free to leave. The love drop-in has been able to help many people in need. The ministry is put together through the joint effort of Inner City Remnant and First Baptist Church, which also does outreach involving taking homeless and needy youth to coffee shops to witness to them, and recreational activities, such as taking youth to the beach. These activities have proven very successful. Of the 15 homeless who were taken to the beach, 11 had jobs within two weeks. The directors of these ministries also have great vision. One of the plans for the future is to have professional coffee equipment of their own. The directors hope that through their vision, more youth will be drawn to the Lord. The organization is located at 909 S.W. 11th Ave.