The Threads of Our Life

When I think of Mrs. Dollarhite, I may always bring to mind an image of an elderly woman with a coronet of braids and an almost eager, expectant look on her face. What little I knew of her past didn't matter because what brought her to the Mission was very real and very present in her life: her desires to help others and to serve her Savior. Touring the men's shelter one day, her face, again with that eager expression, lit up to see the dorm. Many of the beds had quilts that she recognized for the simple reason that she had made them. She enjoyed telling us why she chose the pieces and the patterns, and it was always obvious that she put thought and love into every stitch.

The Mission, with 100 years of service to Michigan's capital area, is blessed to have so many supporters, like Mrs. Dollarhite, who care passionately about the ministry of rescue. For some, there is a legacy going back to grandparents who served in the Mission. Occasionally, we are blessed to hear from a man whose life was transformed decades ago because someone was willing to give of their money and their time to make a difference in our community.

I am often amazed at how interconnected our lives really are. Would you be surprised to learn how many of your neighbors, your fellow employees, your friends, also support the Mission? We look over our mailing list and see people who must live only a few houses away, who support the Mission on a regular basis. Do they know the connection even exists?

And that connection goes beyond supporters to those we serve. Your cashier at the grocery store, one of your child's friends at school, the young man you passed on his way to class, these could be the faces of someone whom you have helped by supporting the ministry of rescue. Throughout the community, the Mission serves as a thread, connecting us all in a pattern of hope.

Mrs. Dollarhite understood hope because hope reaches fulfillment through love, and her quilts were an expression of the overwhelming love in her heart for those in need. In September 2012, her eager eyes finally opened on the sight of hope fulfilled, as she saw her Savior face to face. Though she is now present with the Lord, the warmth of her legacy lives on through the ministry of rescue. We are grateful for those whose gifts make it possible for us to meet physical and spiritual needs, as we are grateful for those who went before us, showing us the true meaning of love, one stitch at a time.

Bless This City

CRM Centennial 3-6-5 Photo for 8/31/12

No matter how often we see God provide in miraculous ways, we are still humbled every day by the times He does "exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20). Recently, a local church decided to focus a worship service on the needs here in our community. As part of this worship event at our capitol, they felt it necessary to include an opportunity for outreach. They asked what was most needed, and we replied that summer was a time of many needs but especially food. We serve annually over 100,000 meals a year, and August is actually one of our busiest months. They responded by providing about two tons of food items. We are amazed and very grateful to see the line of men, women, and children walking from the capitol to our buildings on Michigan Avenue. The food was very welcome and will definitely make a difference, as we provided nearly 10,000 meals in August and are, so far in September, averaging more dinners than we did in August. Praise God for His supply, and thank you for being His hands, to provide rescue to those in need!

Changes to the "Face" of Homelessness

Staff stop for a quick meeting.

When I was first employed by the Mission in December of 2004, one of my fellow employees told me that the winter months were our "busy" months and summer was a slow time. In 2004, we had not yet expanded our women and children's shelter and the economy was doing well. However, over the past few years, a trend has developed where our services remain steady throughout the year and actually peak during the extreme cold and again in the late summer months. (The women and children's shelter especially sees increases in July and August.) For example, our public dining room served more lunches in July than any previous month and more lunches in August than in July. Unfortunately, while our actual services have increased and changed in the past seven years, the image of homelessness has not. Most people would assume that homelessness increases during the cold weather because the image of homelessness is a chronically homeless, aging, alcoholic male. Instead, the majority of those we shelter are women and children. And many of the men who stay at our shelter do not fit the stereotype either. The result of this change in the face of homelessness is that the Mission never really experiences a "slow time." Our resources are always being expended because there are always needs to meet. That is why we are so grateful for you, our fellow rescuers. So far this year, nearly 10,000 hours have been "given" by volunteers, and your monetary gifts help keep the lights on and the doors open to the nearly 150 women, children, and men we shelter every night. Your prayers, too, are so important in encouraging staff to continue to serve. Thank you for being what you are, compassionate rescuers! Thank you for helping us help others!

The Path to Transformation

This year, we at the City Rescue Mission were excited at the opportunity to extend our Life Transformation Program. Through the years, the Mission has seen many transformations, not just of program students, but also in how the program itself operates. The completion of our Maplewood Center allowed us to offer this one year program to women. Women seeking to overcome their addictions can meet with the program manager and begin their first steps on the path to Life Transformation. It is certainly a joy to watch these women grow, and our prayers are with them as they begin to rebuild their lives and, hopefully, their broken relationships. We also ask you to pray for us, as we seek to live a Godly example and to present the truth to them in a way that is clear and practical for their lives once they graduate from the program.

Prayers for Home

Mark, our executive director, has the opportunity of volunteering in children's chapel at our women and children's shelter. Last night, the group of four-to-eight-year-olds gathered together to pray, and the leaders asked if there were any prayer requests. The majority of the kids assembled offered the same, simple request, that their moms would get a home. What a blessing to be able to offer these moms and kids a place of safety and shelter. Please continue to pray that these families find a permanent home that would also be an environment where Truth and Love live.

Provision

July was a busy month, with the Mission serving more meals than any other month this year. Already, August looks to be even busier, and our food supplies are beginning to feel the summer pinch. As reported in our recent newsletter, we are especially in need of meat. Below is an email sent out from our director of operations, which shows the Lord's provision through the compassion of our fellow Rescuers:

Greetings,
I have to share with you an experience we had here on Michigan Ave with our kitchen staff today. Two of the kitchen staff were informing me that we were low on meat so I asked them if we had enough to get us through this week because we have two steers coming to us in a few weeks that were purchased at the fair a couple weeks ago. They said yes we did have enough, if we really stretched things out we could get by. I then said to them that we need to be in prayer for meat. That conversation was after lunch around 2pm today. After I got finished with that conversation the front door bell rang so I went to answer it. It was a man donating a bag of chicken tenders, so I gave it to the cook and said well… it’s a start. We both kind of chuckled and he put it in the refrigerator. Later this afternoon, I was putting some things away that I had just picked up when the back door bell rang. One of the cooks was with me and answered the door to find a mom and two or three kids handing him some meat. He got the cart and said that they have more so I helped him bring it in. I didn’t really get a chance to talk to them, but the mom did say that they received our newsletter and saw where we were in need of meat. We received 240 hamburger patties, 6 bags of chicken tenders, and about 8-10 bags of meat balls. We were so thrilled that we prayed to thank God for answering our prayers. I was coming back from a pick up just earlier praying that God would give us wisdom and discernment on how to use the meat we had. Not more than an hour later this meat comes in. What a mighty God we serve. I just had to share this with everyone because we sometimes get so busy that some things go unnoticed...

Thank you, fellow Rescuers, for your faithfulness in helping us provide for the physical and spiritual needs of men, women, and children in Michigan's capital area. And thank you for your prayers for wisdom and continued provision as August usually is one of the busiest months for the Mission.

"Mission: Play"

CRM Centennial 3-6-5 Photo, 8.3.12

Last year, South Lansing Kiwanis took on the "Mission: Play" project to "promote leadership through active youth" by building a new playground for our women and children's shelter. Project Chairperson, Alfreda Schmidt, undertook raising $24,000 for this project. She presented her goal to her local Lake Trust Credit Union, as she knew of the very active role they play in our community. Lake Trust was excited at the opportunity and offered to match funds by dedicating a total of $12,000 for the project. In less than a year, the matching funds were raised and a groundbreaking event took place on July 11, followed by the first build day on the 14th. We are so grateful to Lake Trust, South Lansing Kiwanis, and the many who gave toward this project. Lansing Kiwanis also partnered with this project by providing safety fencing around the property and the play area itself. The project will make a difference in the lives of hundreds of homeless children in our community!

Now for the "rest" of the story: The photo chosen to represent our centennial 3-6-5 project for this week features our very own Ginasaurus. Our staff was almost as excited about the new playground as the children who stay with us. When Jim, director of volunteers and project coordinator, informed us that a "dinosaur" was part of the playground, we all thought of our dinosaur aficionado, our very own Gina. And the Ginasaurus was born :)