We've Got You Covered

Altrusa International of Youngstown met at the Canfield Library during August to make blankets for the Rescue Mission. This was a project for their “Make a Difference Day.” President –elect Janet Haladay, Secretary Dianne Leanne, and former Vice President Judy Kane delivered these hand-made blankets to the Mission. Thank you Altrusa for making a difference in the lives of our guests at the Mission.

Open Doors

At the Rescue Mission, our doors are always open. They are open, not only for people who are experiencing homelessness, but they are open for visitors and volunteers as well. This week we were honored to have a group of Kent State University nursing students tour the Mission. This “field trip” is part of the “psych” rotation in their training.

Crystal Eckman, our Mission Ambassador and tour guide extraordinaire reports that they really enjoyed the tour. “They had a really, really good time.” Thanks, KSU students for stopping by.

Call and schedule a tour or just stop by. Our doors are always open.

Unsolicited Testimonials

Mercy College of Ohio, a nursing school affiliated with St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown, recently brought several groups of nursing students to tour and learn about homelessness in the Mahoning Valley. Afterwards, they were required to evaluate their visit and share their impressions.

Here are several of the comments from the students:

I had no idea the Mission had job and educational programs. I also learned just because you have to attend a mission doesn't necessarily mean you're "lazy" or a "bum." Hardship can effect anyone at anytime. I am grateful for this program in our area.

I live 10 minutes from the Mission and I never knew it was there. I pass groups of people on my way to school and home from school who I never really paid attention to, who are most likely homeless or addicted to drugs and alcohol, but I always looked away. Before today I believed homelessness was, in a way, a choice. These people probably got addicted to drugs, although they knew the consequences but made the decision to do illegal drugs anyway and it led to their homelessness; so it was their choice or their fault they're in that situation. Although that is true of some individuals, I learned it could happen to anyone. It could happen to me or someone I love. You don't have to be addicted to drugs to be homeless; you could just fall on hard times in life... Those who are willing to pick themselves back up after they've hit rock bottom deserve and need a place like the Mission to feel like they're members of society again.

Instructor Annette Henrichs said "In their evals, they rated the Mission 100%. Thanks for all you do."

Thank you Mercy College of Ohio Nursing Students!

Yes, We Do That Too!

This is Rev. Dave Wyant filling the pulpit at Sharon Baptist Church in Sharon, PA. This church has called a new Pastor who will begin on August 7. In the meantime, they reached out for help in filling the pulpit. Dave is a faithful volunteer who speaks every Sunday at the Mission for the 9:00 a.m. church service. Dave, whose wife is the Director of Development at the Rescue Mission, is working toward a PhD. in Biblical Studies. His goal is to become "the most over-qualified volunteer in Mission history." Dave loves to study and preach God's Word!

We have several men at the Mission who are willing and able to provide pulpit supply. Dave is one of 3 men who have been active this summer preaching and representing the Mission at area churches. If you are interested in having a Mission representative speak about the Rescue Mission or provide a message for a Sunday morning service, please contact Ron Starcher, Director of Church Relations. He can be reached at 330-744-5485 or Rstarcher@RescueMissionMV.org

Tent City Closed

For the past several years, visitors to downtown Youngstown have noticed an encampment popularly called "Tent City." Last year, some well-meaning advocates encouraged people to donate blankets, food, and clothing items to the people who were living along the railroad tracks near the Mahoning River.

Last week, city officials have begun to clear out these encampments. YPD Chief Lees cites good reasons for this in a recent interview that you can see here. There are many resources available to help people who experience homelessness. No one needs to live in a tent. The issue is that some individuals refuse help because the help offered comes with accountability.

The Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley provides emergency shelter so that no one will have to live in a tent. If someone really wants help, we are here, thanks to the generous support of faithful donors in the community.   

This is Who We Are

The Rescue Mission is a conservative, evangelical, Protestant ministry. We make this claim without apology or without trying to be deceptive. We believe in the priority of Scripture, the necessity of personal conversion, and the responsibility to proclaim the gospel. This is a story that we tell whenever we can.

At first glance, claiming to be Protestant may seem to put us at odds with other streams of Christianity. As was mentioned in the previous post, not all Protestants consider themselves to be evangelical. Likewise, not all who call themselves Christian consider themselves to be Protestant. The largest “denomination” within Christendom is represented by the Catholic Church, Roman and otherwise. From the different streams of Catholicism, the Mission has supporters, clients, volunteers, partner agencies, and even former Board members. So, while we are who we are, we appreciate the diverse contributions from other traditions.

The key is in maintaining our specific identity without alienating those who differ and without compromising our core convictions. I think we do a pretty good job of this. We invite you to come by and check us out.

 

Who Are You, Part Two

In the sidebar of this blog, you can find our well-worded and concise mission statement. This was developed more than 15 years ago to describe the essence of who and what we are as an organization. For many it is sufficient to say that the Rescue Mission is a faith-based organization. For others, it is helpful to know that we are a 501c3, non-profit; still others are encouraged to see us as a Protestant, non-denominational, evangelical, para-church ministry. Admittedly, these tags mean different things to different people. So, to encapsulate the essence of the Rescue Mission’s identity, we may be described in these ways:

We are a non-profit, tax exempt agency. This means that we do not manufacture a product. We sell nothing. We are structured to supply services, not products. As such, we are completely dependent upon outside support. We choose to limit that support to private donations. This means that we do not solicit or receive any government funding.

We are a faith based organization. We do not discriminate in the services we offer on the basis of religious affiliation, but we make no apology that we place great value on the spiritual component. Our worldview informs us that people are more than the physical entities with whom we interact; there is a deeper, spiritual part of humankind that cannot be ignored.

When it comes to our “faith base,” we are decidedly Christian. While we do not withhold services from those who identify themselves with other religions or no religious systems, we are not interested in creating an ecumenical atmosphere that appeals to all. Realizing that this may place us at odds with other faith traditions, we, nonetheless, will stay true to our Christian convictions. Likewise, there is no need to apologize for being labelled as “Christian.” Historically, Christians have been at the forefront of social change by promoting literacy, building hospitals, caring for orphans, etc. It is only recently that Christianity (and all religious belief, for that matter) has been viewed as harmful and dangerous, particularly by the “New Atheists.”

We stand in the stream of evangelical Protestantism. Protestantism is divided between evangelical and mainline. Evangelicals are more concerned with issues like personal conversion, a more literal understanding of Scripture, and the need to evangelize (see the distinction here). Mainline Protestants have a more “modernist” approach to things like Scripture, the need for personal conversion, and the claim that Jesus is the sole means of personal salvation.

This is part of the portrait of the Mission; this is part of who we are. There is more.