FortCollinsRescueMission.org
December 2013
Home for the Holidays Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest‌for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28-29 (NIV)
Thank you for your generous heart for the homeless in Fort Collins!
Home for the Holidays
Winter is a long and difficult season for the homeless. The loneliness and despair found in the cold weather and dark hours are only amplified during the holidays. While the entire community celebrates, the homeless can easily be forgotten. Your support will help make certain that each person who needs a meal receives a delicious plate of food this Christmas, and each person who needs a warm bed has a place to sleep. Please remember the poor in our community. Together, we can help restore their hope during this special season and offer them a “home for the holidays!”
Michael was intimidated for the first 24 hours he spent at the Mission. He had never been homeless before and didn’t know what to expect. But when he heard about the Steps to Success Program, he felt hopeful. “The Mission gives you an opportunity to succeed. It also means safety and warmth. And Christmas here will be like being with family,” he says.
Joe has been living out of his backpack for the past seven years. He wants to have a sustainable lifestyle and says, “As soon as you join the program, you have to be grateful for a warm bed. Shelter is a basic need and in a perfect world, we should all have that with our own two hands.”
Please use the enclosed envelope to mail your donation today. Or visit FortCollinsRescueMission.org/donate to make a secure donation online.
Fr om t he C EO Dear Friends, This is our second Christmas and the completion of our first full year operating Fort Collins Rescue Mission. A lot has changed in that time! We have renovated the inside and outside of the Mission, and developed great relationships with churches, businesses, other nonprofits, and government officials. We are grateful for the warm welcome from the community, and have tried to be the best neighbor we can be. But there are some things that have not changed. We still have an increasing number of poor and needy people coming to us for help. This Christmas season we will have up to 83 men and women staying with us each night. They come for various reasons, but they all know that we offer not only
a warm bed, shelter from the storm and a hot meal, but a second chance at life. I want you to know that they are thankful for us, and for you too, as we work together to break the cycle of poverty through the power of Jesus’ love. May you have the peace of Jesus this Christmas. God Bless,
Brad Meuli, President/CEO Denver Rescue Mission/Fort Collins Rescue Mission
Adam moved to Fort Collins thinking he had a place to stay. When he discovered he didn’t, he was scared about sleeping on the streets. He found Fort Collins Rescue Mission and instantly felt relief. He entered the Steps to Success Program with a desire to leave his past behind and to move forward in life. “It means everything to me to have a Christmas meal here and warm bed that night. I don’t have anybody but at the Mission I have a bed, a roof over my head, food in my stomach, and a conscious mind,” he says.
Please consider donating any of the following items: • Toilet paper • Paper towels • Pillow cases • Feminine hygiene products • Wash cloths
Statistics: How You Help Change Lives OCTOBER
Greatest Needs
Meals Served
Beds
Chapel Attendance
Churches Involved
9,500
4,028
389
20
Please contact Heather Pulley with any questions or for exact descriptions of other “big item” needs at HPulley@FortCollinsRescue.org. Changing Lives is a news publication of Fort Collins Rescue Mission. Director: Jim Carmack Director of Communications: Christine Gallamore Designer: Rachel Vigil Writer: Rachel Greiman | 316 Jefferson Street • Fort Collins, Colorado 80524 • 970.224.4302
To post a note of encouragement on the Mission's Facebook page, visit Facebook.com/FortCollinsRescue.
blog.DenverRescueMission.com
Non-Profit Org.
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
Fort Collins Rescue Mission 316 Jefferson Street Fort Collins, Colorado 80524
Denver, CO Permit No. 117
RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
Home for the Holidays
FortCollinsRescueMission.org
No one should be forced to sleep outside, at any time, but especially not at Christmas. Look inside to see how your donations give the homeless in Fort Collins the chance to sleep in a warm bed.