In The News

Whoville Thanksgiving Celebration Wrap Up

Click here to check out all of our photos in our NEW Gallery

On Saturday, November 22, the Union Rescue Mission hosted a Whoville Thanksgiving celebration on Skid Row. An estimated 3,000 people came out to enjoy the Thanksgiving feast. Attendants included 2,500 guests from the homeless community, volunteers, URM staff, corporate and celebrity sponsors.

A BIG thanks goes to some of our corporate sponsors: Fox Entertainment, Dodgers, KJLH, Herbal Life, Clippers, City National Bank, HSBC, Nestle, Magic Johnson Foundation, and Disney.

Celebrity Sponsors include: Andre Ethier, Red Cloud, Jaynie Jackson, Jeremiah 22, and World Boxing Hall of Famers – Israel Vasquez, Alfonso Gomez, Bobby Chacon, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Walter Sarnoi, Paul Banke.

In order to feed the large crowd with a delicious feast of roast/deep fried turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, salad, and apple pie, URM prepared: 100 deep fried turkeys (16lb ea), 90 turkey roasts (8lb-11lb), 75 pans of vegetables, 74 pans of stuffing, 40 pans of cranberry sauce, 64 pans of sweet potatoes, 80 pans of mash potatoes, 4320 dinner rolls, 510 pies (4080 slices), and 65 gallons of gravy.

Check out the joy and excitement of the thousands that participated.

Dodger’s Andre Ethier to spread holiday cheer throughout Los Angeles

Dodger’s outfielder Andre Ethier will be coming to Union Rescue Mission on Saturday, November 22 to help serve Thanksgiving meals to the homeless.

Ethier will then visit the Union Rescue Mission this Saturday, November 22 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in downtown Los Angeles. The Mission, located at 545 S. San Pedro St., will be a hosting “Thanksgiving in Whoville” event. Ethier will help serve Thanksgiving meals, hand out 1,000 blankets and sign autographs. This is Ethier’s second visit this year to Union Rescue mission. The outfielder kicked out his community initiative to help the homeless at Union Rescue mission in June.

Click here for the press release.

“Bed shortage forces L.A. County mental health staff to rely on police” – LA Times

Molly Hennessy-Fiske of the LA Times writes about the effect current laws have on the ability of Mental Health workers to effectively assist the mentally ill. 

Alarmed by reports that Los Angeles County mental health staff — hobbled by a countywide shortage of beds for the mentally ill — are increasingly forwarding emergency calls to police, commissioners overseeing the department on Thursday asked that a plan to end the practice be presented by early next month.

Department of Mental Health workers have turned to law enforcement officials because hospitals are required by law to take emergency mental health patients transported by police. If a county mental health worker brings a person in for treatment, facilities are not compelled to accept them.

URM’s Andy Bales talks about the importance of utilizing Mental Health professionals in dealing with patients on skid row.

Advocates for the mentally ill and the homeless say that there are not enough hybrid teams to go around and that police who respond alone can aggravate emergencies.

“Folks who are trained to deal with people who are having mental health issues have the experience to calm things down,” said the Rev. Andrew Bales, chief executive ofUnion Rescue Mission on skid row. “Somebody who’s distressed is probably going to panic when they see the police. I’ve been in that situation where I’ve been trying to help someone and they became upset when the police arrived.”

Click here to read the article.

“We are all in this together” – LA Daily News

Andy Bales, the CEO of Union Rescue Mission, wrote an article in the LA Daily News about the current financial difficulties and the effect it has on organizations like URM.

We here at the United Rescue Mission in downtown Los Angeles are facing extremely difficult times. More folks, especially families, are coming to us in need at this time. We’ve added another floor to house families devastated by the economic downturn, at a time when giving is way down.

We can’t cut back on programs or services because the rest of the world and our fellow human beings need us more than ever.

Click Here to read the article.

More middle-class professionals join homeless ranks – LA Daily News

Troy Anderson interviews Andy Bales and some friends of ours at Union Rescue Mission regarding the increase in middle-class professionals who are struggling with homelessness.

Colin never thought he’d wind up on Skid Row.

As a middle-class father and business owner, he had achieved the American dream. But that all came crashing down recently when his coffee-bean importing business went under and the home he was renting in El Segundo went into foreclosure.

With nowhere else to turn, the Westmont College graduate sought shelter for his family at the Union Rescue Mission in downtown Los Angeles.

Andy Bales, president of the Union Rescue Mission, said he’s also seeing professionals and other middle-class people coming into the mission who are experiencing homelessness for the first time, including former mission donors.

Click here to read the article.

Economic Crunch Hits Downtown Non-profits – LA Downtown News.com

Richard Guzman writes about the drop in donations to organizations working on Skid Row.

Andy Bales has seen a lot of hard times during his years as CEO of the Union Rescue Mission. But now, the organization that for more than a century has helped those down on their luck is in need of desperate help of its own.

“We’re down about 25% over our normal donations, so we’re barely hanging in there,” Bales said. “I’ve never seen it this bad.”

Click here to read the full article.

Fire goes around Hope Gardens homeless facility – LA Daily NewsT

Troy Anderson of the LA Daily News reports on the LA Fires and Hope Gardens.

As 125 homeless women and children fled Hope Gardens early Sunday while a towering wall of wind-fueled flames swept down Lopez Canyon, the blaze suddenly changed course and veered around the rustic facility – leaving a green oasis in the midst of charred landscape.

“The fire captain told me the fire was coming down the hill, burning hot and high, and out of nowhere, it suddenly turned and went around our facility,” Hope Gardens Chief Operating Officer Scott Johnson said. “They have no idea why. We call it the hand of God.”

Click here to read the article.

Homeless man dies after being set ablaze in LA – AP

Raquel Maria Dillon of the Associated Press reports on the sad death of a homeless man in Los Angeles.

 Andy Bales, chief executive of the Union Rescue Mission on downtown’s Skid Row, said the incident was “part of a long history of people attacking vulnerable homeless individuals in Los Angeles.”

“They think the person is less than human because they happen to be homeless. I don’t know how you could do that to another human being,” Bales said.

Click Here to read the rest of the article.

Heidi Montag & Spencer Pratt of MTV’s hit Reality show “The Hills” at Union Rescue Mission

In an effort to raise funds and awareness of global hunger, Taco Bell teamed up Heidi Montag & Spencer Pratt of MTV’s hit Reality show “The Hills” to bring a World Hunger “Reality Check” that’s happening right here in the United States at the Union Rescue Mission. URM is one of the largest rescue missions in the U.S. and the oldest in Los Angeles. The number of people living with hunger every day is approaching 1 billion. The Union Rescue Mission serves about 2,500 meals a day, 7 days a week 365 day of the year to hungry people on Skid Row. Thank you Heidi & Spencer for being part of the solution!

Non-Profits Fret About Their Benefactors – LA Business Journal

Howard Fine of the Los Angeles Business Journal writes about how the economic slowdown is effecting charities like Union Rescue Mission.

Union Rescue Mission on L.A.’s Skid Row provides food, clothing and shelter to more than 1,000 people a day. But thanks to this month’s Wall Street meltdown, some of those people may have to make do with less help.

“We were already off 17 percent in our donations before the latest Wall Street crisis hit two weeks ago and since then, the drop has been even more pronounced,” said Chief Executive Andy Bales. “Everyone is a bit panicked and concerned and holding on to their money. We’re looking at where we can cut, where we can make savings.”

Click here to read the full article.