The Mission

The Mission – March 2014

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Pops is a 70-year-old former heroin addict, bank robber, and drug dealer. He was once considered so dangerous and mean, the gangs along the U.S. border with Mexico nicknamed him “El Diablo” — The Devil. For 30 years, he also dealt drugs and death on the streets of Los Angeles. But he came to Union Rescue Mission in 2009, a decision that transformed his life. We originally published his story in February 2012. But that was just the beginning of his remarkable new life . . .

It’s a beautiful day in MacArthur Park and Pops is enjoying a stroll through the area. After kicking a 50-year heroin addiction at Union Rescue Mission in 2009, he’s determined to enjoy every moment of his new life.

Suddenly he overhears two youths talking about drugs. “You boys addicts, huh?” Pops says. “What of it?” they reply. Pops shows them his heavily scarred arms . . . Continue reading »

The Mission Newsletter – February 2014

George

Right now, thousands of people in Los Angeles are experiencing the cold reality of homelessness in winter. But weather’s not the only kind of cold. I spent years running from God, like Jonah, hiding in the cold, dark belly of the whale.

I grew up in an economically poor, but spiritually rich, family. Most of the men were preachers and ministers. But I chose a different path. Continue reading »

The Mission Newsletter – December 2013

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I was walking down the street one day in November 2011, when I passed an old lady with a dog. I’d never seen her before, but she stopped me. “Excuse me, young man,” she said. “God has plans for you. You can reach people others can’t. So whatever you do, get on the right side of God and stay there. You remember what I said.”

I’m not used to strangers stopping me on the street, so I kept walking. But a few steps later, I turned around to take another look at her. She and her little dog were gone. But what she said haunted me.

While I believed in God, He wasn’t important to me. After all, I thought, I’d led a great life without Him. I earned a lot of money as a private contractor, laying carpet, tile, and hardwood flooring, as well as doing drywall and painting. I had a great home and a girlfriend who was carrying my child.

So, no, God wasn’t that important — but crack cocaine was. Although drugs had never been part of my life before, suddenly I was spending almost $300 a day on crack, and it was beginning to tear my life apart.

I don’t know whether that old lady was an angel or what. But God used her to get my attention. If God had something for me to do, I knew I’d better get clean and figure out what He wanted. So two months later, I checked into Union Rescue Mission.

Two months after that, my girlfriend gave birth to my child. My baby lived for five hours and died. Then a month after that, my girlfriend died of a brain aneurysm. I know one thing, I couldn’t have endured that much sorrow if it weren’t for Union Rescue Mission.

I still don’t know what God has planned for me. But I’ve been here for almost two years now and I’m clean and sober. The Mission has completely transformed me. For the first time, God is number one in my life. I know I could leave today and never touch drugs again. I could leave and rebuild my career. But I remember what that old lady said. And I’m not leaving this place until God pats me on the shoulder and says, “Here’s what I got for you to do.”

So what’s my New Year’s wish for 2014? God’s pat on my shoulder.

 

NYW

notesfromandy

For a long time, I’ve joked that I want to be a skinny biker dude — you know, one of those skinny guys riding their bicycles around town. It was a joke, because as someone battling Type 2 diabetes, and major heart and kidney problems, I had no hope of that ever happening.

In July 2012, I got my heart fixed, but by December, my kidneys had failed. I feared that my lifelong work on behalf of people experiencing homelessness was coming to an end. It was hard to face that. The number of people living on Skid Row continues to grow. It’s as bad as I’ve ever seen it. And the desperation here is even worse. It broke my heart to think I’d have to give up this work.

But last February, my dear wife donated one of her own kidneys to me. Her gift saved my life. With a new heart and a new kidney, my health has improved dramatically. I no longer face 2014 with fear — in fact, the URM team and I have big plans! A new jobs program for our guests. Moving more families away from Skid Row. Helping hundreds more people gain new housing.

And my New Year’s wish? Well, I’m biking again. I want to be that skinny biker dude I used to joke about!

Blessings,

andysig

The Mission Newsletter – November 2013

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“Christmas used to mean presents, cookies, and Santa Claus,” says 11-year-old Kira. “But now I know it’s not about toys. It’s about the birth of Jesus. Jesus is the Son of God and He’s my savior. And I know He loves me no matter what.”

Kira is just one of nearly 80 children who live with their moms at Union Rescue Mission’s Hope Gardens Family Center, a 77-acre sanctuary that offers transitional housing to families experiencing homelessness like Kira’s.

“She’s a good kid,” says Kira’s mother, Tifani. “She’s a firecracker, with a bit of a temper, but she says what she wants to say and she means it. I’m proud of her. She graduated last spring from 5th grade, and she was awarded the school’s Presidential Certificate for her good behavior and academic achievement.”

Kira came to Hope Gardens, along with her mother and two sisters, on Easter Sunday, 2012, after they escaped a dangerous situation where they were living.

Unfortunately, Tifani was unemployed and had no place else to take her children, until she learned about Hope Gardens.

“I like Hope Gardens,” Kira says. “The people here take us to the park and the swimming pool. Sometimes we have barbecues. I’ve even seen three families of deer since we’ve been here!”

While summers are Kira’s favorite season, she also loves Christmas. “Last Christmas was really fun here,” she recalls. “We had a party and we got to make cookies and gingerbread houses, and we even got to sing karaoke! My favorite Christmas song is ‘Happy Birthday, Jesus.’”

Then she starts singing . . . “Happy birthday, Jesus, it’s that time of year. All the lights on the trees say Christmas time is near. Another year’s behind us, you helped us make it through. So, happy birthday, Jesus, this song is just for you.”

            “Over the years, I’ve pretty much gotten everything I wanted for Christmas, she says. “But I don’t want any presents this year. Ho

pe Gardens is helping my mom start her own business so we can move into a new house. That’s my Christmas wish.”

 

No Better Christmas Present

by Tifani

All my life, I’ve loved singing Joy to the World at Christmas. How can anyone sing

that carol and not feel happy? It always reminds me that God and my kids are my true joy.

But my life hasn’t always been filled with joy. I got married when I was 21 and we had three beautiful daughters, including Kira, whose story is in this newsletter. But despite our kids, we spent 13 rocky years fighting and quarreling until I couldn’t take it anymore.

KinaTifani

After we divorced, the girls and I struggled financially. I finally got a good job working as a bus driver. But then in the span of a couple years, my mother and father died, then two of my uncles and a nephew passed away, and I fell into a depression. I found it hard to keep working.

Life was so difficult for me — but it was especially hard at Christmas. Instead of feeling joy, I just cried.

Then we started having problems with our apartment manager, who was breaking into our home and was making my daughters feel afraid. The police wouldn’t do anything about the manager, so I had to leave with my kids. But I didn’t have the money to move into another apartment, and we had no place else to go.

Thankfully, when I called emergency services, they referred us to Union Rescue Mission and their Hope Gardens Family Center.

We’ve been here since April 2012. They say every gray cloud has a silver lining, and Hope Gardens has been that for me. Not only have they provided me and my kids with meals and shelter, they’ve given me the chance to go back to school. And today I’m in the process of starting my own private bus business.

This Christmas, Joy to the World means something special again. I may be down, but I’m not out. I have my kids, we’re safe, and we have a future. I may not always feel it, but joy is a real possibility again. I know it. I feel it. And there’s no better Christmas present than that.

 

notesfromandy

It’s hard to imagine what happens to a child when they experience homelessness. Devastated and embarrassed, they often emotionally withdraw. And some kids will never be able to let go of that pain.

No matter what time of year, homelessness is painful for children. But Christmas is especially difficult. They have no home, no tree, and no gifts. There’s no excitement or anticipation of Santa Claus coming down the chimney. It’s heartbreaking to witness that kind of sadness in kids at Christmas.

That’s why we work so hard to bring the kids at Union Rescue Mission and Hope Gardens a little joy and hope this time of year. Our Christmas Store ensures parents have gifts for their kids. We throw Christmas parties, we let the kids decorate trees throughout the building, we take them out to look at Christmas lights, and, of course, we tell them all about Jesus and His own experience being homeless. Children take great comfort in knowing that Jesus understands what they’re going through.

As we enter Advent and the Christmas season, please remember all the special kids experiencing homelessness today who are made in His image. After all, when you care for these precious children, you care for Jesus Himself.

Blessings,

AndysSig

The Mission Newsletter – October 2013

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As a child, Keith loved the joy of family at Thanksgiving. But as an addict, the day never existed. Would he ever experience that joy again?

            Growing up, Thanksgivings at our house were filled with happiness and great food. But what I remember most is the joy of family, surrounded by my parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews.

I wish every day had been joyful like that. But I suffered from dyslexia. In school, the stress of spelling, writing sentences, and doing math was overwhelming. Worse, the other kids laughed at me and called me “dumb.” I grew up angry and terrified of responsibility. I didn’t want to live up to anyone’s expectations of me.

The only way I could cope with stress was with alcohol and drugs — marijuana, PCP, and crack. And over the next 40 years, those drugs dragged me all the way to Skid Row, sleeping on a sidewalk across from Union Rescue Mission. But in 2011, I finally had enough, walked inside, and joined their recovery program.

I took advantage of everything — dental and health care, Bible studies, counseling, anger-management classes, and more. But the most important part of my recovery was this: washing dishes in URM’s kitchen. For almost eight hours a day, every day, I washed uncountable numbers of pots, pans, dishes, and silverware.

This place serves thousands of meals every day. Every time I entered the kitchen, I faced a mountain of dirty dishes. They count on those dishes being clean — and they counted on me to get it done. The stress was unbelievable. At times I wanted to quit. But I learned to tackle that mountain one dish at a time. And learning to manage that stress changed my life. I learned I could handle anything. Washing dishes might seem like a boring chore. But, it had been a long time since anyone trusted me, relied on me, and believed in me to be part of something.

I even handled washing the dishes at Thanksgiving, when we served almost 4,000 meals at a single serving! But that’s not what I remember most about that day here.

As a kid, I loved Thanksgiving. But as an addict, lost in drugs, that day never existed. The day would come and go and I’d never know. But spending Thanksgiving here at the Mission, I experienced a sense of joy and family I hadn’t felt in 40 years. It took me all the way back home to when I was a kid. In fact, I felt I was home! And I never want to miss that joy again.

Today, I’ve graduated from the program, I continue to follow Jesus Christ, and I’m preparing to go into real estate. And I’m still washing dishes — and grateful for it.

For people experiencing homelessness, Thanksgiving can bring up painful memories and feelings of loneliness. That’s why we launched URM’s Thanksgiving Meals Project — to serve 180,000 meals to hurting people this holiday season. Your gift will provide nutritious meals, safe shelter, and long-term care in a loving environment.

$29.12 can provide 14 holiday meals!

Thanks to generous donations from local markets and food suppliers, each holiday meal costs $2.08. This season, we expect to serve more than 180,000 meals — your generous gift will help make Thanksgiving a success!

 

notesfromandy

As Thanksgiving approaches, we like to share what makes our guests grateful. Sometimes those who seem to have the least are the ones who experience gratitude in far richer ways than I do.

This year, however, thankfulness is easy. A year ago I didn’t think I would still be alive today. But I was blessed with courageous doctors, heart surgery, and a sacrificial wife who donated a kidney for me. Today I am healthy, strong, and serving hurting people.

One of the reasons I survived was all the encouragement our guests gave me. People still on the streets have expressed sincere joy that I’m still alive. Many even prayed for me.

What an honor it is to be a part of God’s work on Skid Row. I am a grateful man.

Blessings,

andysig

The Mission Newsletter – September 2013

Union Rescue Mission’s Chef Delilah knows that Thanksgiving is about more than great food – it’s about family.

All my life, I wanted to be a chef. I spent my childhood watching chefs like Paula Deen and Rachael Ray on TV, and I dreamed of one day hosting my own cooking show. I never dreamed of cooking meals on Skid Row.

So after high school, I pursued my dream and studied at the Cordon Bleu cooking school. Later, I catered food for the Twilight films, TV shows like True Blood and Desperate Housewives, and even for the Oscars and the Grammys! I was on my way!

But God had other plans. In April 2011, Union Rescue Mission invited me to cook full-time for men, women, and children experiencing homelessness. Tiring of the instability of catering work, I thought, Sure. Why not?

Skid Row didn’t intimidate me – but suddenly having to prepare meals for 2,000 people per day sure did! At first, it was hard to keep up. I’d never worked so hard. But that was nothing compared to Thanksgiving – and the prospect of serving 4,000 people at one time!

I’d never spent Thanksgiving with people experiencing homelessness.

I didn’t know what to expect. Thanksgiving was always one of the best days of the year in my family – the food, the laughter, the hugs, and the family bonding. What would it be like on Skid Row?

There was so much food to prepare, we had to start a week before. We baked pasta, prepared yams, mixed gravy, and made stuffing. I cooked almost 100 turkeys in five hours – it was crazy! The final two days leading up to our Thanksgiving event, I never went to bed. As guests showed up to eat, I worked in the kitchen. My back hurt, my feet ached, I was covered in sweat. But I still had no idea how the event was going.

Finally, about 3:00 p.m., my boss said, “Let’s go look.” It was unbelievable. The decorations, the music and happiness – thousands of people who may have been struggling in their personal lives, but today they were family. And I thought, Yeah, this is what it’s all about.

Now, Thanksgiving is already around the corner again, and I’m already looking forward to it – even the exhaustion, pain, and adrenaline. But more important, I’m looking forward to family. Yes, the men, women, and children at Union Rescue Mission are my family now.

This Thanksgiving, you ask me what I’m grateful for? Serving here. There was a time I worked in the midst of all the glitter and glamour of Hollywood. Now I can’t see myself working anywhere but Skid Row.

 

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Help make this year’s Thanksgiving our best one ever with your generous gift today!

Click here to Donate now!

Chef Delilah is not only a first-class cook, her personality lights up the room. She helped make last year’s Thanksgiving our best celebration ever!

Every year at Thanksgiving, we invite more than 4,000 men, women, and children experiencing homelessness into our “home” for a special party, complete with all the hugs, love, and laughter that make this a true “family” event.

I think it’s this “family” spirit that makes our Thanksgiving celebrations so remarkable. Time and time again, I hear hurting men and women tell me that was the day that convinced them to give life another try.

But our Thanksgiving isn’t possible without caring people like you. So as we approach the season, thank you for being part of this big, extraordinary family!

Blessings,

The Mission Newsletter – August 2013

 

 

Thelma

Thelma grew up in a family of 12. Her father was a very strict pastor, especially when it came to church. “He made us go to church two or three days a week, and we didn’t have a choice,” she recalls. “But I never really understood God. All I knew was that I hated going to church because I was made to go.”

Thelma says her father was controlling, angry, mean, and even physically abusive. “It reached a point where I had taken enough abuse, so I ran away.”

She was 13.

On the streets, Thelma says she initially felt free, “because I was able to do what I wanted to do. But I made a lot of bad choices.”

Those choices included alcohol, cigarettes, barbiturates, and, later, harder drugs, such as PCP and crack cocaine — and she had three children along the way. When Thelma became addicted to crack, she lost custody of her kids.

“I couldn’t hold on to a job or an apartment,” she says. “I started living out of abandoned houses. Men beat and abused me. I started hustling and stealing — even from my own family. I got high to live, and lived to get high. It was a sad, hard life. Next thing I know, 25 years of my life went by.”

Through it all, she blamed God, believing He was punishing her, and that He didn’t care. But when she was busted for drug possession in 1998, Thelma hit rock bottom while sitting in a jail cell. Tired and scared, she cried out to God.

“God heard me,” she recalls. “In jail, I got saved. God filled me with peace and turned my life around. That’s when I found out that with God, all things are possible.”

Soon Thelma reconciled with her entire family, including her children. But God had even more for her. Part of her transformation also took place at Union Rescue Mission. When Thelma applied for a job at URM in 2001, she found a home. She has been working with men, women, and children experiencing homelessness ever since. Today she is URM’s Supervisor of Hospitality and Guest Services.

“I feel so blessed,” she says. “This is right where I need to be, helping people. God has shown me so much love, kindness, and compassion. That’s what I want to show our guests here at the Mission. I want them to know someone cares.”

Summer Heat Alert!

When temperatures rise on Skid Row, the harshness of these streets turns even crueler for people experiencing homelessness. Right now, people are suffering from life-threatening, heat-related illnesses on the sidewalks outside our doors. And we desperately need your help.

Every summer, donations drop way off. Worse, right now we’re facing a serious and dramatic financial shortfall that’s threatening our ability to meet the needs of precious souls who need our help this summer.

Your Gift Offers Hope to Hot, Thirsty People on Skid Row

Your kindness will make a huge difference. Your gift today will provide not just water, but also cool shelter, nutritious meals, and another day of hope — in Jesus’ name — to these precious people who need your help the most this summer. So please send the most generous gift you can today. Thank you!

 

notesfromandy

Grit and Grace

I hope you read Thelma’s story in this issue of The Mission. She’s one special lady. After spending so many years struggling with drugs and homelessness herself, she offers extraordinary understanding and compassion to our guests. She has a big heart and refuses to give up on anyone. At the same time, she’s also wise and tough as nails, when she has to be. But in Thelma, it’s all love, all the time.

And when you’re working with people who are coming in off these streets of Skid Row, that combination of compassion and tough love is essential. These streets make people tough or they die. And we have to match their toughness with equal amounts of grit and grace.

But we do it because we truly believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ can transform lives, no matter how damaged they are. The power of that gospel transformed Thelma’s life. And it’s transforming the lives of countless numbers of people at URM.

With your caring support, we live out that gospel whenever we offer hurting people food, shelter, counseling, medical and dental care, and more. That’s what makes Thelma special. And thanks to you, it’s what makes Union Rescue Mission special.

Blessings,

 

The Mission Newsletter – July 2013

Brian

All my life, I felt alone, isolated, like I never really fit anywhere. Even in my own family. Instead of connecting with friends, I retreated into a world of art and fantasy. From the age of 3 or 4, I would spend hours, or even days, drawing characters, making up stories, living in a world that existed only in my head and in my art.

My parents didn’t understand and tried many different ways to change me. So as a teenager, I rebelled — dabbling with LSD, mescaline, mushrooms, whatever I could get my hands on. Hallucinogens brought my art to life. And I loved it. Before long, I was eating 50 to 100 hits a day.

Then I found crystal meth. And that was it. Meth enabled me to focus on my art at a whole new level. Not only that, I could draw for three days straight, until my body would collapse from exhaustion. But I craved it.

Somehow, in all that insanity, I got married in my early 20s. My wife even gave birth to two sons. But both were born with serious health problems. My first son was born with DiGeorge Syndrome, kind of a cross between autism and Down Syndrome. My second son was born with an incurable heart condition and I had to make the heart-breaking decision to take him off life support. When he died, so did my marriage.

The Loneliness of Homelessness

After that, everything fell apart. My wife fell into prostitution and heroin addiction. My surviving son ended up with my wife’s aunt. And I ended up living on the streets for the next seven years, isolated and alone, disconnected from everyone but my drug dealers.

But as I grew lonelier and more exhausted, I wanted to change. That’s when I came to Union Rescue Mission. I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into, but when I walked inside the building, the compassion and love I felt brought me to tears. I felt known, like everyone here could see me — the real me. I wasn’t alone anymore. And something about that made me want to be the best man I could be.

The Real Me

I gave my life to Jesus that first day and I have never craved drugs since. I took advantage of every service the Mission offered, from health and dental care, to counseling and spiritual care. They met every need I had. And I have never felt so alive physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I’ve rebuilt relationships with my family, and even my son. And, I returned to school, and I’m now working full-time as a graphic artist.

I never knew this kind of life was possible, and I never would have experienced it apart from Union Rescue Mission. Because the people here were willing to show me compassion and love me, I am a real person now. URM didn’t give me my life back. The truth is, I never had a life. What I can say is, thanks to URM, I now have a life.

 

13URM07NL URM July 13 NL_Pkg.inddMen and women trapped in homelessness often have significant barriers to overcome before they can return to a productive life. Agencies like Union Rescue Mission offer structured, long-term recovery programs that have helped thousands of individuals and families address and overcome their obstacles and return to the community as productive citizens.

To learn more about our 10-Step plan please click here

 

Andy eNL

Notes from Andy

Healing the Past — Building for the Future

Brian, who tells his story in this issue of The Mission, is one of those guys who’s so sharp and “with it,” it’s hard to imagine why he lived the life he did. But in many ways, he reminds me of my son Isaac.

Like Brian, Isaac struggled through adolescence. It wasn’t easy for him to be my son, and for many years he walked a different path than I would have. Honestly, I spent those years parenting from my knees — praying. But like Brian, Isaac found his way. And today, Brian and Isaac are both fine young men.

Transforming lives like Brian’s is what Union Rescue Mission is all about. We embrace people experiencing homelessness with the compassion of Christ, offering them hope and healing, and helping them find their way home. We help them heal the physical, emotional, and spiritual wounds that led them here in the first place, through counseling, legal aid, medical and dental care, and spiritual nurturing. But then we also offer them building blocks, like education and job training, to help them construct brand new lives.

Body. Mind. Soul. Spirit. It’s what our Mission is all about. But it’s not just our Mission. It’s yours, too. You are the Mission. And nothing happens here apart from you. Thank you.

Blessings,

andysig

Rev. Andy Bales

The Mission Newsletter – June 2013

The Mission, June 2013.

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

Sgt DeonThe 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 AndyAndy eNL

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,

andysig

Rev. Andy Bales