Rescue Portland October 2013
LONG WALK HOME
Linda Steps Bravely Into A New Life Cars whizzed by her, creating powerful gusts of wind that pushed Linda aside. Gravel crunched beneath her feet as she walked along I-84 West toward Portland. She trembled with each step that took her further from the man who had abused her. Alone and afraid, Linda had begun a brave walk toward freedom. - Continues inside -
AVt
A Great Blessing Linda suffered repeated abuse. Randy grieved the death of his wife. Both of them had experienced many years of life-numbing addictions. Because of your partnership, we’re able to offer deeply hurting people a better way. Our New Life Ministry provides a safe, healing environment where broken men and women can find real answers to their heartache. Over the course of a year-long residential program, God heals the emotional wounds that lie at the heart of addiction. Men and women learn practical life skills such as math, writing, managing finances and parenting. They draw close to Jesus and allow Him to speak love and truth into their lives through affirming relationships, Bible study and prayer. It is a great blessing to witness the relational reconciliation that occurs in the lives of many of the people we serve. Men and women restored to friends and family who love them. Hurting people restored to a sense of wholeness within themselves. Lost people restored to a relationship with God, who wants so much more for their lives. Your support provides life-giving care, just when a hurting person needs it most. Thank you for your compassionate partnership.
P.O. Box 3713 Portland, OR 97208-3713 503-MISSION (647-7466) www.PortlandRescueMission.org
Mission Needs • New undergarments • Socks • Blankets • Backpacks • Deodorant (spray or solid) • Disposable razors • Toothbrushes • Toothpaste • Travel-size toiletries
Grateful for grace,
• Jeans • Life Recovery Bibles (NLT)
Eric Bauer Executive Director P.S. Emotional wounds lie at the heart of most addictions. Your support helps us offer healing of those root causes – and gives hurting people a new chance at a healthy life. Thank you.
35,000 MEALS GIVE HOPE Thanksgiving is coming quickly. Many homeless people look to the Mission as their home and family, especially during the holidays. Between now and Thanksgiving, we’ll feed over 35,000 meals to hungry men, women and children in need.
Each meal is an opportunity to learn a name, offer a smile, listen to someone’s story – and give HOPE. Your gift today will be a tremendous help – and could be just the encouragement a hurting person needs. Thank you.
More than a meal. More than a bed. GIVE HOPE.
Please bring donations to the Burnside Shelter at 111 W. Burnside, Portland, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Short-term street parking is usually available at our front door.
AVt
As Linda sat in a sunlit office at Shepherd’s Door, our ministry for women and children, another panic attack consumed her. Only a couple of weeks had passed since she walked out on her abuser, and she was determined to get help, in spite of the fear that seized her. Days later, Linda joined our residential New Life Ministry. “I’ve had to face a lot of hard things in my recovery,” says Linda. “I blocked out a lot of my past and wouldn’t let myself remember it. But now I’m able to talk about a lot of it, and without so many tears.” Addiction had plagued Linda for years. Through counseling, she’s begun to heal from the root causes of trauma, self-loathing and fear that drove her to addiction in the first place. “This is such a beautiful place,” says Linda. “There’s no other place like it.” Gina and Linda have become close friends as they embrace recovery at Shepherd’s Door.
LONG WALK HOME Linda Steps Bravely Into A New Life
(continued from front)
It’s a hard program, to look at your flaws and see where you went wrong, and why. To figure out how to change isn’t easy, but it’s worth it. Healing is a painful process.” God had often played an intimate part of Linda’s life as she attended church, prayed and read the Bible. But now she sees Him more clearly. “There’s a spiritual foundation in me that wasn’t there before. I realize just how deeply God loves me.” That security gives Linda hope.
Just hours before, Linda had sat rocking herself on the couch in tears. Her boyfriend paced the room in anger. Her heart pounded. A confusing blur of thoughts raced through her mind. Should she leave? Where could she go? Would anyone help her?
In just a few months, Linda will graduate from our New Life Ministry. Her boys, age 14 and 16, haven’t been as close to her as she would like, but she’s praying for a fresh start. “I want my kids to know that I love them, that I’m sorry. I can’t take away the past, but I want to have a future with them.”
Later, while her abuser slept, Linda made a desperate call. “Mom? I can’t do this anymore. I need help. Can you come pick me up?” She grabbed what few belongings she could carry and started walking. Ninety minutes later, Linda’s mom met her along the highway. She was safe, for now.
Linda walked away from a life of abuse. Today, she’s about to take her first steps into safe, healthy living. “There’s hope,” says Linda. “There’s always hope.”
Abusive relationships were common for Linda. Wanting love and affection, she too often fell for the wrong type of men. When they became violent, she stayed too long, believing they were sorry or that relationship counseling might solve the problem. Inside, Linda believed she didn’t deserve any better. She felt she wasn’t worth loving.
Your gift today helps rescue women like Linda from addiction and abuse, giving them a new start in life. Thank you.
Years of violence had scarred Linda with post-traumatic stress. Panic attacks overtook her, sometimes out of nowhere, other times triggered by people yelling. Her body’s survival instinct kicked in, beyond her control. Her arms went numb, her heart raced. She could barely breathe or form a coherent thought. Her condition had even caused her to lose her job.
Scan with RedLaser app or other QR code reader to watch video.
Watch Linda’s video story to hear about her journey to new life. See more at www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Linda
10 CAUSES OF
HOMELESSNESS PORTLAND RESCUE MISSION
ADDICTION
68% of U.S. cities report that addiction is their single largest cause of homelessness. Effective addiction recovery programming that addresses the root causes of addiction is essential to successfully transition hurting people from homelessness to stable housing.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Nationally, 50% of homeless women and children are fleeing domestic violence. When a woman is abused, she faces a crisis of safety. If she stays in the home, she’ll be beaten again. If she leaves, she’ll have little means of support. Either choice is a tremendous risk.
MENTAL ILLNESS
20-25% of the homeless population suffers from chronic mental illness. For these men and women, ordinary tasks such as maintaining their physical appearance and health, or managing a job and paying rent, can be insurmountable without assistance.
JOB LOSS & UNDEREMPLOYMENT
Lately the economy has left many Americans underemployed at wages that can’t sustain them, or in desperate circumstances after layoffs and job cuts. Unemployment benefits and savings run out, leaving people homeless who never thought it could happen to them.
FORECLOSURE
Even people who have jobs have found themselves upside down with their mortgages. At the start of the recession, foreclosures jumped by 32%. One survey estimates that as many as 10% of people seeking help from homeless organizations do so due to foreclosure.
POST TRAUMATIC STRESS
On any given night, as many as 200,000 military veterans sleep on the street. Post-tramautic stress can cause them to be emotionally withdrawn, or physically unable to cope with daily responsibilities. Ashamed, they may leave their families and homes as they succumb to addiction.
TEENS
Homeless teens often become so due to family conflicts. They’re kicked out or choose to run away over issues of abuse, teen pregnancy, addiction or sexual orientation. 63% of these teens have been physically or sexually abused.
RELATIONAL BROKENNESS
By the time hurting men or women come the Mission for help, they’ve burned through every supportive relationship possible. Friends and family are no longer able or willing to help. What relationships they have left are usually predatory. In a sense, their situation is less about homelessness and more about unwantedness.
GRIEF
It’s not uncommon to discover that homeless men and women are burdened by grief. Unable to deal with the death of a loved one or other significant trauma, they numb their pain in addiction. They are consumed with grief, which causes them to neglect their job, lose their home, even abandon their will to live.
DESPAIR
“Once you get down this low, it’s hard to get back up,” we often hear homeless men and women say. The longer they are homeless, the more difficult it becomes to combat the lies they hear in their heads. They believe there’s no way out. They don’t deserve another chance. They’ll never break free from addiction. They’ll always be a failure. More than anything, these men and women need hope.
Compassionate support from friends like you helps us offer hope to thousands of hurting men, women and children in our community. Meals, care restore them life and offer a way men, back home. you. Compassionate support fromshelter friendsand likerecovery you helps us offer hope to to thousands of hurting womenThank and children in our community. Meals, shelterWWW.PORTLANDRESCUEMISSION.ORG and recovery care restore them to life and offer a way back home. Thank you. Statistics courtesy courtesy of of the the National National Coalition Coalition for for Homelessness the Homeless Statistics
AVt
He ended up with multiple DUI citations, wrecked three cars and spent time in jail over it. Alcohol stripped Randy of his driver’s license, several jobs – and the respect of people around him. “My drinking drove a wedge between me and my family,” says Randy. “There wasn’t a lot of trust.” Sue put up with Randy’s behavior because she loved him. But the strain on their marriage wore thin. When cancer struck, Randy had to make a choice. “Something changed right then. It’s sad to say at age 54, but I had to grow up.” Throughout Sue’s cancer treatments, Randy did his best to support and care for her. Before she died, he promised her he’d take care of their son, that they would be okay without her. “I knew I had to get my act together. There was no safety net this time. I was going to make something of myself, for her.”
HELD TOGETHER
A friend helped Randy find Portland Rescue Mission. “I’d never been homeless,” says Randy, “but I could have been headed that way.” At The Harbor, our New Life Ministry for men, Randy embraced counseling, Bible study and prayer to help him heal from the scars of his past so that the need for alcohol fell away. “I can accept myself now,” he says. “That’s a really peaceful place to be, and it’s been a long time coming.”
Randy Heals From Crippling Grief
As Randy looks to a healthy future, he’s held together by vibrant new relationships – with his son, his parents, with the men he’s gone through recovery with – and with Jesus. He has a driver’s license again and a job. He’s grateful for his new life working, attending church and spending time with people he loves.
Randy stood motionless as the lid closed on his wife’s casket. Tears streamed down his face as he struggled against the reality of what was happening. After a three-year fight against cancer, Sue was gone. She had been the glue that held their family together, that held Randy together. And now he was alone.
“I hope Sue’s in heaven smiling down on me. I want her to know that I held my promise. I made it.”
“If you’re not worried for yourself,” said one of Randy’s friends, “I’m worried for you.” Alcohol abuse was just how Randy dealt with life from the time he was a teenager. Now consumed by grief, Randy was likely headed for a downward spiral he might not recover from.
Help more men like Randy heal from the root causes of addiction. Your support offers hope and healing.
Randy grew up in middle-class, religious and hardworking family. Though his parents loved him, he carried a weight inside of never feeling like he was good enough. Alcohol seemed to help Randy fit in with the crowd, relax and forget about himself. But as an adult, Randy struggled to keep himself together. He’d sometimes start his day with a walk to the store to buy beer at 7:00 AM and drink the day away.
Scan with RedLaser app or other QR code reader to watch video.
Watch Randy’s video story and learn about his journey of healing. See more at www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Randy
HOMELESSNESS ENDS! 7 Graduates Start New Lives
Just two years ago, Nate was completely homeless. Randy and Scott were caught in a downward spiral of alcoholism and despair. And Jonathan and Hunter were addicted to meth and heroin. Recently, all five of them graduated from our New Life Ministry in the first-ever graduation at The Harbor, our new facility for men’s recovery. “In the last year since I’ve been here, one thing that I’ve clung to is something I read in the Bible: Don’t be afraid and don’t be discouraged,” says Scott. “Being here at the Mission and growing closer to the Lord has really helped me to not fear.” Two women also graduated from Shepherd’s Door, our ministry to women and children. Teri and Mikole have embraced the hard work of recovery, healing from the root causes behind addiction. “At Shepherd’s Door, I’ve begun to trust and build relationships with the other women, like Teri. She has been like a mom to me. As I’ve opened up and become vulnerable, I’ve learned how much God loves me and how He has a bright future for me,” says Mikole. Thanks for helping these courageous men and women launch into new lives!
BURNSIDE RENOVATIONS
New Help for Homeless Men and Women An important phase of construction has completed as we renovate our downtown Burnside Shelter for new ministry opportunities. As of September, up to 36 men in our Link program now live on the third floor. The Link program allows sober and drug-free homeless men to stay at our shelter and work part-time for us while they save money, look for a job, and establish housing. Most transition within just three to six months. The expansion upstairs frees all 58 beds in our downstairs shelter to be used as emergency shelter for homeless men.
❑ Donate via credit card: Circle One:
Expiration Date:_________________
Card Number: ___________________________________________________________ Phone: _________________________________ Donate via mobile: Scan this code with RedLaser app or other QR code reader Donate securely online: www.PortlandRescueMission.org/OctNL ❑ Keep me updated with news and stories through email: Email:_________________________________________________________________ ❑ Please pray for: _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
I would like to know more about: ❑ Monthly giving through checks, auto-pay, or electronic transfer ❑ Donating my car ❑ Planning my estate, annuity, or trust ❑ Volunteering at the Mission
Donations to the Mission are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. Any gifts received above our current need will be used to help care for hurting people throughout the year.
AVt
Second floor renovations continue as we prepare to open new ministry for homeless women. A dayroom will provide safety and healthy interaction with our staff and volunteers. Transitional shelter for up to 16 women – a first for the Mission – will meet a vital need, protecting women from slipping into chronic homelessness and street dangers, and providing stability as they seek a new life.
What Can A Meal Do?
Ways You Can Help GIVE
“A meal at the Mission is a haven for the folks out on the street. It’s a nice break from life out there. It’s a place to come in and talk with other folks. It’s a Godsend.” BRUCE
• Help provide meals, shelter and recovery
care to men, women and children in need. See the donation form below.
VOLUNTEER
• Opportunities listed at
www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Volunteer
DONATE A CAR
• Your car donation could provide over
500 meals. Learn more at www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Car
“A meal is everything. It’s community. The staff are friendly. I wasn’t judged. I felt human again for just a couple of hours. I’m in the Link program now and I get to give that feeling back to other people.”
PLANNED GIVING
• Leave a legacy of hope through your
will, annuity or trust. www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Legacy
AUBREY
Stay In Touch “Having Portland Rescue Mission has meant a roof over my head, food in my stomach and God’s provision. I love getting a solid meal and the Word of God.” BUTCH
MY GIFT OF HOPE Yes, I want to help end homelessness, addiction, hunger and abuse. To help hurting men, women and children, here is my gift of: ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑
$8 a month to feed 60 people a year $16 a month to feed 120 people a year $24 a month to feed 180 people a year $______________ a month to help give hope $______________ one time gift
Enclose your check or complete your credit card information on back. 3A3
P.O. Box 3713 Portland, OR 97208-3713 503-MISSION (647-7466) To donate online, visit www.PortlandRescueMission.org/OctNL