FROM HOMELESSNESS TO HOPE

The very thing we take for granted, someone else 

is praying for:

A 74-year-old woman calls, who is literally freezing. Her 42-year-old daughter has 4th-stage non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, and her 35-year-old son has liver disease, an amputated toe, and an uncast broken arm from a fall 3 days ago. All this was taking place in their unheated home situated at the top of an unplowed mountain road with no vehicle, and with their only heat being a wood stove that none of them were well enough to keep going. We knew we had to get them out of there, so one of our board members took a jeep and headed out in the snow. The family was an hour away from the Mission in their "dilapidated" home. After getting them to the Mission, the son had to sit on a rollator to push himself up the ramp. The daughter, whose hands were burned all over from trying to keep the woodstove burning so they would not freeze to death, was so grateful, as was her mother and brother, to finally be in the heat.  Each of them had layers of clothing that they had used to attempt to stay warm. They were so exhausted but extremely grateful to finally be in the heat. They did not bring any change of clothes, just a small bag with a few things in it. When they saw their room, their smiles were priceless. Their thankfulness was outwardly evident as was their gratitude for a warm, clean, and safe place to be together. Each day will be a new day for this family. They can shower, get clean clothes that fit, make doctor's appointments, and contact other agencies while making plans to go forward to make their lives easier.

This is one out of over 700 stories of homelessness in the past 10 years here at the Mission.

Thank you, Lord, for giving us the means to help other families like this family.

Serving by transforming lives and restoring families with housing stability to those who are unsheltered and displaced and without hope. Community support with dignity, with life-changing emergency shelter and street outreach, faith-based outreach in crisis situations with Hunger relief, aid after job loss, support for addiction and mental health, restoration of dignity, empowerment, and healing through second chances in long-term solutions to get them back on their feet and end recidivism with intense case management. This is our ministry, "from homelessness to hope".

Get involved today by exploring our volunteer opportunities or making a charitable donation to fund critical resources and make a lasting impact on families of men, women, and children.