Welcome to Hollywood
Almost four million individuals from over one hundred and forty countries call Los Angeles, our "City of Angels" home. Nestled in the basin between the mountains and the pacific coast, the natural beauty and year-round blue skies are reason enough to migrate here. The natural beauty, however, is clearly not the only draw towards this city. Every year hundreds of thousands of teenagers move to L.A. to pursue their dreams in the entertainment Mecca of the world.
Behind the bright glittering lights of red carpet fame though, there is another side of Hollywood's urban life far removed from fortune that is in desperate need of Christ's tangible touch. Surrounded by a city that boasts of the nations' largest immigrant population, the Hollywood area of Los Angeles is also filled with many individuals who are not after the riches in the paparazzi lights, but desire a better future and more opportunity for their children. It is a daily struggle for many Spanish-speaking immigrants, living in Hollywood, to provide for their children, and encourage the pursuit of education over the pull of neighborhood gangs.
Passing by the movie studios and then walking through poor immigrant neighborhoods, groups coming to DOOR Hollywood can expect to be exposed to the stark contrasts of celebrity glamour and urban poverty. DOOR participants will engage in practical outreach to the oppressed in homeless shelters, drop in clinics, and other social service agencies. They will also be encouraged to interact on a personal level with students radically different from themselves for a mutually transformative experience.
We believe that God will significantly impact students' perspectives as they give and receive the gifts of our city. Barriers of racism, and subtle economic prejudice will be dispelled by the love of Christ and replaced by his heart of compassion and significance for the least of these in our city of Angels.