Union Rescue Mission is facing both a tremendous opportunity, and an overwhelming challenge. We have just completed the Sycamore Building at Hope Gardens Family Center thanks to a capital gift from the County Homeless and Housing Prevention Fund approximately two years ago. Renovation is complete, and we plan an exciting move of 12-14 families, moms with children, directly from our 4th Floor at downtown URM surrounded by the mean streets of Skid Row, to the peace, safety and beauty of Hope Gardens Family Center.
To add to that exciting news, we just received word that the Ahmanson Foundation, without even an official ask from URM, stepped up to provide the much needed funds to completely renovate our final building, the Concord Building at Hope Gardens, and we expect another move of 12 to 14 families, moms and children, from URM to Hope Gardens in March. This great news, along with plans to open a Los Angeles Homeless Authority funded project for nine families at 83rd and Broadway, and a move of our year round shelter for 8 families to a site just off of West Adams, has us on the brink of carrying out a long awaited hope and plan to finally succeed in moving every child and mom away from the mean streets of Skid Row and out to a much more child friendly environment.
This has been the plan of the Board of Directors and staff of URM all along, and frankly, it is one of 3 legacies that I had in my heart when I came through the door of URM nearly 6 years ago.
We have the resources to complete the projects to pull this off, and we are so thankful for this, but here comes the overwhelming challenge. We have a $750,000 gap in our operating funds to pull this off. We hoped to fill this gap with a continued County subsidy of $62,500 per month to Hope Gardens, believing that they would support our carrying out of their mandate to get every child off of Skid Row and out of Union Rescue Mission, but to date we have been unsuccessful. I have reached out to the County Board of Supervisors, and we have asked our faithful donors to reach out to their County Supervisor in hopes that this vital funding would come through, but to date, we have not been successful. I have assured the County that if they do not respond and we fall short in funding, kids will be left on Skid Row, and that will be their decision.
Your amazing heart and faith is our final hope of accomplishing this tremendous history making goal this year. If you could respond in yet another unprecedented way, and we could raise an additional, unexpected, $750,000 by December 31st of this year, we could move ahead with plans to get every single mom and child off of Skid Row and to a beautiful place of safety and hope and a ladder out of homelessness and poverty.
Thank you, for your amazing faithfulness to this Mission, especially during these last few very difficult years. Do you know that together, we have rescued more than 1800 precious children from the streets of LA since the recession hit families so hard in December of 2008? Amazing!
Now it is time to move these precious children from URM on LA’s Skid Row to a place that they deserve! If we fall short, moms and kids will be left on Skid Row. Please give what you can! Thank you! Andy B.
Andy,
That is amazing and each and every child is blessed to have an opportunity to escape the mean streets of skid row. I’m prayinng with you to help serve more homeless children and families. Hopefully Door of Hope can partner with you on this great work sometime in the future. We are struggling financially now and with God’s help we will both make it and fufill His call and heart for the poor and especially children.
God Bless,
Tim Peters
Executive Director
Door of Hope
Just wanted to express my appreciation for your work and to commend your use of the modern media to get your message out. Also, your activist approach looks very interesting.
A long while ago (1963), when I was in my late teens, I was, for several reasons, on the streets of LA. One afternoon, I joined the queue at the Main Street building awaiting the doors to open so that I could get a meal. It was my first time to try the URM.
Turns out that it was just before Easter, and there was a lot of attention being paid to get the facilities ready for a special event. Fred W. Demara who was one of the counselors (Clinton Goodwin was there, too) walked by, saw me, and asked if I wanted to work. Well, of course.
So, I spent a few days helping clean up, paint, and get the place looking spiffy. I got a bed and food. What more did I need? Then, he offered me a job in the dining hall and kitchen.
After a while, he got me moved to the front area to help welcome and sign in clients. Then, I got involved in upstairs office work. There was this Burroughs machine that was used for posting donations. That was fun to work. Too, the telephone systems in that day were the old console (I have a picture of myself at the console that I might post someday) that required plugging a cord into the appropriate slot (the changes in technology has just been tremendous).
Well, altogether, I spent over a year there, at the URM. I eventually got a clerical job at the LA Times that was a good start in getting me working again. I stayed at the URM until I could get my own place. Then, I went back to college, became a professional, worked, traveled, and am now retired. By the way, I even ended up even working for Burroughs (they merged with Sperry Univac who I was working for at the time). The Lord works in mysterious ways.
I remember that the URM (I have a copy of Helga Bender Henry’s book) was there when I was in need. Too, I recall well the characters that I met, including Mr. Demara. He was a friend.
During my time, the clients were men who were mostly not young. It is disheartening to hear that now there are children, and families, who need help.
But, from looking at your site, your approach seems to be effective. God bless you and your efforts.