A Harsh Reality

12 6 Y E A R S O F S E R V I C E

DenverRescueMission.org

May 2018

A HARSH REALITY a story about addiction, mistakes and second chances

I've found the recipe for

being happy whether full

or hungry, hands full or

hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through

anything in the One who makes me who I am.

Philippians 4:12-13

(The Message)

In our STAR Program, each participant is assigned to a case manager. Over the course of their enrollment, participants will look to their case manager for guidance and support. Here, Nick (right) is with his case manager, Reed (left).

FAMILY. COMMUNITY. CONNECTION. Recovering from addiction requires help, and sometimes second chances. his is Nick's Story, and this is how YOU helped him embark on a new journey.

Letter from the CEO

Dear Friends,

People often ask me, “How is it going at the Mission?”

My response is usually short: “Well, it is busy,” I say.

“There never seems to be a shortage of people to serve.”

With three emergency shelters sleeping over 800 people a night, and a Lawrence Street Community Center serving upwards of 2,000 meals a day to 1,000 people, there is plenty of work to do. Our New Life Program is always full, with over 200 men currently enrolled.

Why choosing Denver Rescue Mission for your Donor Advised Fund is your best choice.

Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) have become America’s most popular tool for charitable giving. One of the simplest ways to give real estate, stocks, mutual funds or commodities, DAFs offer an immediate tax deduction for the market value of your donation, but also allow you time to decide when you want to give. DAFs offer the opportunity to create an easy-to-establish, low cost, flexible vehicle for charitable giving. To learn more, go to DenverRescueMission.org/Donate, scroll down and click on the Donor Advised Funds tab.

Mothers, Will You Accept This Rose?

This type of “busyness” can cause those laboring daily in it to become frustrated or dejected, particularly when there does not seem to be a reduction in the number of people seeking help. However, I continue to be so proud of our staff and volunteers, who keep suiting up and showing up. They are tireless in their work to help others, to love on the needy, and to try and point them to Jesus and experience life as productive, self-sufficient citizens.

An often quoted Scripture, Isaiah 58:10-11, reminds us of the importance of this work:

And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame.

Even in the darkest moments of this work, the Lord continues to guide us and turn the darkness to noonday as we see lives changed! Thanks for coming alongside us, for loving the people we serve. God is at work at the Mission using your gifts for his glory. He can strengthen all of our frames!

God Bless,

Brad Meuli President/CEO

We’re encouraging our STAR Transitional Program participants to bring their moms to lunch on Saturday, May 12. Many of our participants, while living on the street or surrendering to their addiction, lost contact and trust with their families. In our programs, as they navigate their addiction with success and begin to take steps toward a life of recovery and self-sufficiency, our participants begin to mend broken relationships, and one of the first family members they reach out to is their mom. And the best part, each mom in attendance will take home a rose. Thank you, moms! We appreciate you.

A HARSH REALITY a story about addiction, mistakes and second chances Sometimes people make mistakes.

On April 24, 2009, Nick was accepted into Denver Rescue Mission's New Life Program at Harvest Farm. He was navigating the program well, attending his classes, maintaining his sobriety and building a support system.

“I was doing recovery,” says Nick. “I had a pretty good network. I was connected with a small group. I was attending church, living in a sobriety house and I had a mentor.” Nick was also enrolled at Colorado State University, pursuing his goal to become a veterinary technician.

Then, he fell in love with a girl.

Eventually, Nick’s love turned into an unhealthy obsession. His entire life became about his girlfriend, and after two years of being in recovery, Nick quit the New Life Program.

He dropped out of school, trashed his goals and moved to Denver. “I felt this void inside,” says Nick.

“And I was just trying to fill it.”

His living situation in Denver was affordable, but miserable—five housemates, four rooms, one bathroom, crummy carpets and stained walls, bottles everywhere, and dog feces left on the floor for days. His housemates were shady, through his walls he could hear people coming in and out of the house. “I know the owner grew weed, and I’m pretty sure he dealt drugs,” says Nick. “It just wasn’t a comfortable place.

The only time I came out of my room was to cook and use the bathroom. All of us kept our door shut, all the time. I remember one of the guys spray painted the words ‘STAY OUT’ in big letters on his door.”

Nearly every day Nick would walk in the front door of that house, take a left and go straight to his room.

But, despite the harsh reality of his new space, he was still sober, still navigating his addiction with success.

In 1969, Shirley Chisholm, an American politician, educator and author stood in front of the House Select Committee and spoke these words, “It is not heroin or cocaine that makes one an addict, it is the need to escape from a harsh reality.”

According to Chisholm, it isn’t the action of using drugs that makes one an addict, but rather the situation in which an individual finds themselves, namely, a harsh reality. When exposed to a harsh reality, the natural tendency is to try and escape, to get out. Escaping can come in many forms, both healthy and unhealthy. Nick’s came in the form of alcohol.

It happened at that house, the one with the crummy carpets and stained walls.

He left his room to use the kitchen.

He was preparing chicken and rice for himself and his girlfriend. While cooking, he opened a cabinet. It was a harmless gesture. He only wanted spices. The chicken didn’t taste right, “It wasn’t bad,” he says. “But it tasted dry, and I felt like it could use some seasoning.” He knew where the spices were kept, he didn’t use them much, but he knew what cabinet they were in, the one just above the stove.

Nick reached for the metal handle. The first thing he saw when he opened it was the tiny bottle of nutmeg and then the rosemary. The third thing he saw was the gallon bottle of Wild Turkey.

‘A couple of sips won’t hurt anything,’ he thought to himself.

Sometimes people make mistakes. And sometimes people in recovery relapse.

“There was a time when I felt alone. It was terrible, it is terrible, to be dying on the streets, to have your life run amuck… .” Nick’s voice fades, and he shakes his head, to the left and then the right. His eyes are closed, but he’s searching for the right words to say.

“My addiction and my recovery are contingent upon my walk with Christ,” he says. “I think it starts with devotions, with meditation and prayer, and with church. Those are the cornerstones of my spirituality. Those are the things that guide me into Scripture, and those are things that guide me into relationship with people around me.”

After that sip of whiskey, Nick drank nearly every day for two years. After a long internal battle, he decided to apply for a six-month rehabilitation program in downtown Denver. He was accepted and successfully graduated the program.

Then, on June 13, 2017, Nick found his way back to Denver Rescue Mission. Of course, it wasn’t our first time meeting Nick. We knew of him from the New Life Program back in 2009.

In a moment of weakness, a moment where temptation clamors and judgment subsides, people who live with addiction can make one mistake and that one mistake turns into two and then, before they know it, they’re right back where they started— addicted and alone.

Nick’s harsh reality didn’t begin with his living situation, although the house was preposterous. It didn’t start with his unhealthy relationship. Nick’s harsh reality began when he decided to leave his friends in Fort Collins, his system of support, his connections.

“I made a mistake,” says Nick. “I slowly started to take my mind off of what I needed to do to stay sober, and I left my community behind.”

Addiction ravages families and causes good people to neglect their relationships, their work and their goals. It can be a lonely experience.

“Once I finished my rehab, I knew that I needed to go into transitional housing,” says Nick. “I didn’t want to go out there and fall on my face, again.

I want to transition back into society, but I want to do it slowly. I’m not ready to jump right back in, so I came to Denver Rescue Mission.”

Nick is enrolled in our STAR Transitional Program. STAR has been a platform from which he can save money by working a job, and it has been a place where he can navigate his addiction. “STAR holds me accountable to being sober, and the structure here has put me in the best position possible to transition back into society.”

For people in recovery, there is no remedy to fix the situation, no cream or pill to make the addiction go away, but there is healthy community and authentic relationship. These are the pillars of recovery, the forces that empower and sustain people who live with addictions.

Donate, and help people like Nick

transition into society as productive, selfsufficient citizens.

Just as people are not defined by their harsh reality, people do not have to be defined by their addiction. This is why our case managers’ and counselors’ main focus is instilling hope in our participants, hope that a new reality can be reached. Through community, understanding one’s triggers and making healthier decisions, a new life is possible. One of our counselors said it best, “we help our participants recognize triggers, we dismantle the lies they live with—‘I’m not enough’ or ‘I’m a failure’—and we replace those lies with truth. Scripture says we are holy, loved, image bearers of God. And then the question becomes what does that identity—holy, loved, child of God— look like for the specific individual, how does that identity impact their day-to-day life? That’s when we acknowledge their gifts—God has provided everyone with a gift set— and we want to recognize those gifts and speak into them.”

And it’s not just our case management team that helps people navigating addiction. It’s you, too, our donors.

Your support changes lives, your donations empower our team to make a difference.

Sometimes people make mistakes.

And sometimes people in recovery relapse. But wherever a community of people and support exists, hope exists also. Hope for sobriety and hope for a new reality.

transitional

KELLY BROUGH on

Why Denver Rescue Mission Matters Recently, I was sitting at the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation's Leading Colorado luncheon.

There were three finalists, and as I was sitting there reflecting on the life of each finalist, I realized they all endured and had overcome incredible challenges. All three of the finalists are great leaders, and they are each deserving of the recognition. But, the truth is, all of our lives have incredible challenges. I think this is where Denver Rescue Mission makes a lasting impact; the Mission closes the gap between how we understand our lives to be different, and reminds us that we are all the same—of course, we have different experiences, different situations.

But everyone has experienced that moment in life when things go wrong, that moment when hurt or pain seems to triumph over joy and happiness.

Those moments are hard because we live in a time when most people in this country define themselves by their situation. When a

person’s situation changes for the good, then everything is great. But when someone’s situation changes for the worse, then it’s devastating. It’s vital that as a society we help each other see our value beyond our position or our income. That’s where I see Denver Rescue Mission making the most significant difference—when I volunteer there, I see people being acknowledged, being seen. That’s important because a person first has to know they are seen in order to believe that they have value. Many of the people who the Mission serves are in a dire situation, and when someone looks across at them and acknowledges their presence, their humanity, their worth— that’s important. It’s important to help each other see what we’re capable of and to support one another through whatever the obstacle may be. The Mission does that, whether it be mental illness or addiction or someone experiencing a difficult time, the Mission helps people see their potential. And for many, that’s the first step to finding one’s path back into society. That’s why Denver Rescue Mission matters, because at the Mission, they help people see their worth, no matter the circumstance.

Statistics How You Help March

Meals provided

76,203

emergency services Guests have their immediate needs met, and we build relationships with them.

Once trust is established, our invitation to consider long-term solutions, like the life-changing programs we offer, is more readily accepted.

597,392

Nights of shelter provided

38,470

296,220 Chapel attendance

28,020

2,944

Clothing distributed (lbs.)

38,163

Kelly is the president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. When she’s not focused on putting more Coloradan’s in really great jobs, she is likely to be exploring mountain passes on her road bike. In 2014, 5280 Magazine named Kelly one of Denver’s most influential people. And though born and raised in a small town in Montana, she’s Colorado to her core.

our Core Strategies

YTD (fiscal year)

280,321 Clinic services provided

354

3,824

Locations Lawrence Street Community Center: Meals, restrooms, showers, washing machines and dryers, clean drinking water, and access to Mission staff for encouragement and guidance Lawrence Street Shelter: Overnight shelter for men assigned daily, chapel and health clinic

Rehabilitation Program graduates overcome destructive habits, maintain healthy community, obtain full-time employment, and provide for their own sustainable housing.

Holly Center: Overnight shelter for men assigned weekly and lockers for storage

Transitional Programs

The Crossing: Transitional program for families and rehabilitation program for men

Families and individuals develop and practice important life skills, save money, gain the tools they need to provide for their own housing, and transition into a self-sufficient lifestyle when they graduate.

Community Outreach People at risk of becoming homeless or transitioning out of poverty find assistance with basic needs like food, clothing, furniture, and other household items, while interns and other missions around the world learn how to alleviate poverty through a Christ-centered response.

IS A PROUD MEMBER OF:

Harvest Farm: Rural rehabilitation program near Fort Collins Fort Collins Rescue Mission: Meals, shelter and transitional programs Ministry Outreach Center: Central warehouse facility including food, clothing and furniture distribution Administration & Education: Entry point for Mission transitional programs and home to the Mission’s administrative and development staff

P.O. Box 5164 | Denver, CO 80217 | 303.297.1815