I wanted nothing to with God or the church. After my mother died when I was 16, and my older siblings basically abandoned me, I turned my back on God and left His family behind.

But I found a new family — my Crip gang. And I reinvented a whole new life. I changed my name to J-Loc and started selling drugs, stealing high-end sports cars, and living the fast life. I was so broken inside, I didn’t care whether I lived or died. I’d drive 160 MPH through traffic, do wheelies on a motorcycle at 55 MPH, or lead cops on highspeed chases. Anything that could kill me, I loved.

I earned quite a name for myself on the streets. But by 2001, I was no longer the big gangster. I was just another crackhead who’d steal a car for some dope. That’s when a friend of mine brought me to Union Rescue Mission.

I was still mad at God, but I heard a preacher say I never gave God a real chance and I’d never given myself the opportunity to live. He was right. I decided then and there to give God His one chance.

So I threw J-Loc in the trash can and focused on Jesus. I learned about addiction and what it had done to me, and I faced my deepest pain — the pain I felt when I thought I’d been abandoned by my mother, my siblings, and by God. The hurt I felt at never feeling worthy of love. And slowly I realized I was actually worth a lot — I was worth God’s sacrifice of His only Son.

As I worked on my issues, I changed. I started visiting churches and sharing my testimony. I started a singing group, the Brothers in Christ, and we visited churches all over Southern California. In the process, I fell in love — not only with God, but with His church and also the people of Skid Row.

When Union Rescue Mission asked me to become its Church Relations Director, I thought, Well, I’ve been hustling for myself all my life. I might as well hustle for the Lord and folks on Skid Row.Like me, the people on Skid Row need to learn how much they’re worth and how much they’re loved.

They’re priceless. And that’s what churches all over Los Angeles can give them. So that’s what I invite them to do — to come down and show them how much they’re worth.

Because we’re all worth a lot . . . God’s only Son.

 

 Making a Difference in a Mad Max World

The 50-block area of downtown Los Angeles known as Skid Row is really a Mad Max world, fueled by drugs, and ruled by gangsters and predators. And anywhere from 1,200 to 1,400 men and women call those streets home.

It’s tragic what people on these streets endure, even what they adapt to — almost all due to drugs. There’s the brutal cold in winter and the savage heat in summer. Giant rats prowl fearlessly through the dirt and garbage. Men endure beatings by local loan sharks and thugs. Women are regularly sexually assaulted and raped. People who die can lie there for hours or days in a pile of trash before anyone notices.

One of the things that breaks my heart is that many of the men and women who live here think no one cares. And I know a lot of people in Los Angeles who really don’t care. But I love these people with all my heart and I know a lot of other compassionate people do, too. And the hurting people on these streets need our help. Skid Row sure isn’t going anywhere unless we do something.

Fortunately, organizations like Union Rescue Mission are already doing something — and what they’re doing absolutely matters. But Skid Row needs more.

It needs caring people like you and me, it needs people of faith to reach out in love, it needs people to lose their indifference and open their hearts and wallets. It needs people willing to work alongside the professionals like URM to make a real difference, to show the people here that someone does care. Until that happens, Skid Row will never change.

It’s hard and often messy — and easy to give up hope. But personally, that’s where my faith kicks in. Jesus Christ never gave up on anyone, including the people of Skid Row. If He won’t give up, then neither can I.

And right now, He needs people like you and me right here in the trenches of these streets. Change is possible. I’ve seen it happen. And when you see one life change down here, it’s like hitting the lottery. It’s euphoric.

Together we can do it!

Notes from Andy

Love & Mercy in a Hell on Earth

I’ll never forget the man who described Skid Row as “hell on earth.” Drugs . . .prostitution . . . rape . . . death . . . despair. He was right. Skid Row is a violent, soul-destroying place.

That’s why I often walk these streets and invite hurting folks to come into Union Rescue Mission for a bed, a nutritious meal, a night of safety — and most important, the chance to rebuild their lives.

URM isn’t just a shelter offering beds and meals. Yes, we do provide emergency shelter and meals to more than 550 men, women, and children every night. But shelter and meals alone are not the solution to homelessness.

When hurting me and women walk through our doors, they have the chance to enter into a long-term program that can — and does — transform their lives. Every year, men and women get the real help they need to rejoin society as whole, healthy, precious individuals.

But it’s more than a program. What folks find here is love. From the volunteers to the chaplains to our own staff — our halls are filled with love. And that love changes lives.

Sharing God’s love and mercy with hurting men, women, and children. That’s what your gifts and support truly provide.

Blessings,

Rev. Andy Bales

 

Richard Rozman, 62, is a wealth-management advisor and manager in Manhattan Beach, California, and host of the radio program “The Rozman Experience,” which addresses volunteerism and philanthropy. He is a frequent donor and volunteer at Union Rescue Mission.

Richard Rozman loves to talk about Mother Teresa. “People would often ask her,” he says, “‘How do you keep serving the poor, the sick, and the dying with such vigor?’ She would always answer, ‘Whenever I meet someone in need, it’s really Jesus in His most distressing disguise.’”

Richard understands her answer. As a volunteer, he often rubs shoulders with men, women, and children experiencing homelessness at Union Rescue Mission. “You have to believe in God when you come to Union Rescue Mission,” he says. “He’s in the faces of those whose lives are transformed here.”

For more than 10 years, Richard has volunteered his time to work in URM’s kitchen, cooked turkeys at Thanksgiving, sponsored fundraising golf tournaments, taken guests to basketball games, organized hundreds of volunteers from companies he’s worked for, and he’s even looked for ways to connect URM graduates with jobs.

But it’s been a lifelong passion for Richard. He grew up with a special place in his heart for people experiencing homelessness. His father was homeless and used to ride the rails during the Great Depression. And later, when he owned his own service station in Los Angeles, he would employ local men who were homeless and needed change.

“It was quite interesting to watch that,” Richard recalls. “So now when I see someone experiencing homelessness, I remember my dad. That was Dad’s legacy. And that’s why I chose to volunteer my time at Union Rescue Mission.”

As much as Richard appreciates the opportunities he has to give back as a volunteer at Union Rescue Mission, he knows that the men and women he meets here give him so much more. “They have something to teach me about courage, strength, perseverance, and hope,” he says. “They’re not here because they want to be here. They’re here because of circumstances that would have caused most of us to fold our tents before we got here. When I see what these people overcome, I know there is hope for everyone — including me!”

As a result, Richard is deeply grateful for the chance to volunteer at URM.

“Life is short,” says Richard. “Most people act like they’ll be here forever. But we have an end. And what will people say at our funeral? What legacy will we leave? When I leave, I just hope someone benefited in some way because I was here. I am so blessed to have the chance to do this.”

Someone Cared and I Changed

When you’re an addict and your life is in ruins, you think no one cares. That’s how I felt anyway.

I was a drug addict for much of my life. So was almost everyone around me, including my dad. I started smoking weed in elementary school and by age 15, I was smoking crystal meth. Soon it was all I cared about — and I couldn’t quit.

It cost me jobs, cars, relationships, apartments, and by the age of 27, I was living on the streets. I believed I had to get high just so I didn’t have to face how bad my life had become.

At the same time, my father was getting clean and sober at Union Rescue Mission. When he graduated, he asked me to come. I didn’t go. In fact, none of his family attended his graduation. He felt no one cared — and I believe that disappointment killed him. Four days later, he died of a heroin overdose.

I ended up going to jail three times that year. I was tired and ready to change. Like my father, I came to Union Rescue Mission. But would anyone care?

At the Mission, I worked in the kitchen, in the maintenance department, and I participated in vocational classes taught by caring volunteers. Step by step, they talked to me, shared their lives with me, and encouraged me. They told how much they admired and respected me, and I started to feel like a new person.

I can’t tell you how much they meant to me. I knew they had successful lives outside the Mission, and they didn’t have to spend time with someone like me. But they did — and their compassion and encouragement gave me something to live up to. I guess it worked, because today I’m not only clean and sober, I’m the Volunteer Manager at Union Rescue Mission.

The whole experience taught me something. I changed because people cared enough to write checks to support Union Rescue Mission or volunteer their time to help women and men like me. I changed because they believed in me. But I’m not alone. Everyone who leaves this place transformed says the same thing. Our lives changed because of people like you. Thank you.

 Your Gift Doubles to Help Souls in Need

Growing numbers of people on Skid Row desperately need hope and a helping hand. They need YOU. And now, a generous friend of Union Rescue Mission has offered to match every gift we receive before June 30 — up to $200,000!

Your gift today will be doubled to help hurting men and women, and remind them someone
cares. You can provide TWICE the help — and receive twice the blessing!

Notes from Andy

There are many excuses to avoid helping people experiencing homelessness. But I think the real reasons are fear and a belief that people on Skid Row can’t change. So why try?

Rick Rozman, whose story is featured above, knows that’s not true. He has seen that with care and encouragement, people change every day at Union Rescue Mission.

Changing lives isn’t easy. Sometimes it’s messy. But every caring gift you send — every minute you invest as a volunteer or mentor — helps change a life.

This year, I hope hundreds more people like you make the commitment to stop making excuses and start caring. Together,we can end homelessness in Los Angeles forever.

Blessings,

Rev. Andy Bales, CEO

When you’re a kid, riding a merry-go-round, going round and round in circles, is fun. But when your whole life becomes one long ride on that merry-go-round, it’s not so fun.

One year ago, I was 29 years old, with three children, and I had never had a permanent, full-time job or lived on my own. I had my first child when I was just 14, then two more in my early 20s. Despite my young age, I was a good mother. I don’t do drugs, I don’t drink, and I don’t party. But outside of raising my kids, I never learned how to live life outside of the control of my family.

Over the past 16 years, I lived with my mom, my auntie, my sister, my boyfriend, my biological father — round and round, living with whoever would take me and my kids, whoever would take responsibility for my life so I didn’t have to.

But last year, I took a hard look at my life. Me and my kids were sleeping on my sister’s floor. Worse, the constant moving took a toll on my kids — they’re behind in their education and reading skills. It was clear that nothing would ever change unless I changed. But if I left, I’d be homeless. I was scared. Yet I had no choice. I had to get off the merry-go-round.

So I found myself a temporary position as an office assistant, to start earning some money, then I moved to Union Rescue Mission’s Hope Gardens Family Center. Not only did Hope Gardens provide us with shelter and safety, they provided tutors for my kids. They offered me classes that taught me about relationships, gave me better financial skills, and even skills to make me a better mother. They’ve given me everything I needed to live life on my own.

A couple of months ago, my temporary job turned into a permanent one. My next goal is to find us a new place to live. And after that, I plan to attend college to earn my business degree!

Thanks to Hope Gardens, and caring people like you who support Union Rscue Mission, I’m escaping the merry-go-round. Thank you!

No One Deserves to Be Thrown Away

Notes from Andy

The face of homelessness is changing. It’s no longer just the single male, struggling with addiction. Today it includes mothers with kids.

Nationwide, family homelessness is up 13% since 2007 — and is still climbing. More than 3 million parents and children are on the verge of homelessness.

Every week, more families run out of options. They fall all the way to Skid Row. Now, so many are coming to Union Rescue Mission, we’re struggling to find room for them all.

Why are we a society that seems willing to throw our families and children away so easily? We must learn to care again, to make sure no precious human being is thrown away to the streets.

Blessings

Rev. Andy Bales