Kathy isn’t a middle-aged man. She’s never slept on the streets of downtown Portland, and she’s never held a cardboard sign on a street corner. When you hear the words “homeless person,” you probably would never imagine someone like Kathy. But just a year ago, Kathy was indeed homeless. Her heroin addiction had robbed her…
Read MoreIn the second episode of our brand-new series, “Mondays at the Mission,” Corbin Gronvold from George Fox University talks about how he and a group of fellow students are volunteering downtown at our Burnside Shelter. Watch the video here. Like Corbin says, if you are interested in volunteering, don’t hesitate – check out our volunteer…
Read MoreWelcome to the first episode of Mondays at the Mission, our brand-new insider access to the stories, people and events happening right here at Portland Rescue Mission! To kick things off this week, we have a quick behind-the-scenes video with Gina, one of the three graduates from last Friday’s New Life Ministry graduation at Shepherd’s Door,…
Read MoreDwight hated his life. He isolated himself from his family, embarrassed to tell them that he was often homeless. He always put on a smiling face for friends and family, but he was dying inside. He often considered suicide. Since coming to Portland Rescue Mission, Dwight has healed from the demons of his past and…
Read MoreWhen the economy took a dive, Scott lost his job. A lack of connections left him jobless and alone. Depressed, Scott began to drink in order to forget the despair that he was feeling. “I lived on the streets. It was pretty tough. Trying to sleep is the hardest – I didn’t want to fall…
Read MoreLife was rough for JoAnn growing up. Both parents were addicts, and her father had extreme anger issues – JoAnn has vivid memories of him yelling and breaking things in their house. Surrounded by bad influences (JoAnn had her first alcoholic drink when she was just four years old), the turmoil and fear seemed like…
Read MoreAs a little boy, Hunter loved camping with his family. Those memories were always his favorites. One day, Hunter’s parents divorced and right before his dad left, he promised Hunter that he’d take him camping again. Hunter waited years for that call. One day the phone call finally came. But it wasn’t the call he…
Read MoreAfter sixteen months, Kelly and her children are back together, eager to start rebuilding their lives. Kelly’s wide smile reflected her joy as she spoke of finally regaining custody of her children, “I went to court a few weeks back and found out that I’ve been given custody back of my children.” Kelly’s story of…
Read MoreAs a troubled teen whose parents were divorcing, Ryan didn’t know how to deal with the emotional turmoil around him. Drugs seemed like an escape, but trapped him in devastating alcohol and drug addiction for years. Ryan’s Story of Hope on YouTube Thanks to compassionate friends like you, Portland Rescue Mission offered Ryan a…
Read MoreFrancis needed help finding housing. The Portland Rescue Mission LINK program helped him stop the downward spiral to homelessness and its challenges. Francis’ Story of Hope on YouTube Through our LINK program, homeless men who are sober and drug-free can have an extended stay at our Burnside Shelter while they look for work and…
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