The Beacon More Than A Label
September 2026
This Erie Gives Day, your gift helped us look past the labels and see the people we serve. ADDICT. HOPELESS. THEY MADE THEIR CHOICES. WHY DON’T THEY JUST GET HELP? We don’t always like to admit it, but sometimes these are the thoughts that run through our minds when addiction and homelessness come up. But what if we knew the whole story? This Erie Gives Day, we set out to tell that story. Before we even know someone’s name, a label can already stand in the way of understanding them as a human being. The label doesn’t tell you their story—what they’ve survived, or the courage it took to ask for help. Every person in our community facing addiction or homelessness is somebody’s daughter, son, mother, father, or friend.
Erie Gives Day is the Mission’s largest single day of giving each year. When donors like you chose to give that day— whether by timing your monthly gift to land on Erie Gives Day, or giving above and beyond your regular support—the prorated match helped stretch every dollar even further, reaching more people in our community. That’s what your gift made possible this Erie Gives Day: looking past the labels to see real people.
So we asked some of the men and women in our New Life Program to share the truth behind their labels.
“I am NOT my addiction.” “I am NOT hopeless.” The truth is, people experiencing homelessness and addiction are not defined by their hardest moments. They are people—with families, with dreams, with a future. At the Erie City Mission, we believe every person deserves to be seen for who they are, not where they’ve been—and to be held accountable and responsible in the ways that make real change possible. Recovery is possible. Hope is possible. “Once you are transformed, it’s a whole different idea, a whole different life,” said Tia, a participant in the Mission’s New Life Program for Women.
“I AM rebuilding.”
This is the Truth On Erie Gives Day 2026, you helped raise over $300,000 in just 24 hours. Thank you for your support on this day and beyond. Your gift is helping to restore hope and transform the lives of the men, women, and children in our community.
A Message from the Chief Executive Officer BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
Dear Friends, We are coming up on the end of a very eventful summer at the Erie City Mission, which just wrapped up Erie Gives Day, a wonderful day when everyone in Erie comes together to support their favorite nonprofits. This year we challenged our community on social media: hit $200,000 by 4 p.m., and our street outreach coordinator, Rob O’Connell, and I would take on an ice bucket challenge. We hit that mark at 3:50 p.m.— then challenged everyone to help us reach $290,000 by the end of the day. You did it! This summer also proved exciting for the Erie City Mission Haven for Women and Children, planned for the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel School on Grandview Boulevard. On June 24, Millcreek’s Zoning Hearing Board gave us the green light to move forward—a real God moment for our team. Projects like the Haven matter because the need is real. Our outreach team recently found a homeless woman, with nowhere else to turn, bathing her two children in a local park fountain. Rob and his team got to work right away and today she and her children are safe and stable. It’s stories like hers that remind us why the Haven can’t come soon enough. We ask for your prayers as we take this next step.
1017 French St. P.O. Box 407 Erie, PA 16501 contact@eriecitymission.org 814-452-4421 www.eriecitymission.org
Rev. Malcolm Beall, Jr., Chairman Associate Pastor, Federated Church Natalie Washburn, Vice Chairman Owner/Broker, Maleno Real Estate Greg Paulding, CPA, Treasurer Paulding & Associates, P.C. Kathy Griffith, Secretary Retired, Erie Insurance Tera Alabran Director of Operations, PSN Labs, LLC Robert Attaway, Jr. Pennsylvania State Trooper Jeff Evans VP, USI Insurance Services
Alan Hamilton VP, Wabtec Corporation Prof. Dr. Joseph Kuvshinikov Gannon University Honorable Marshall J. Piccinini Erie County Court of Common Pleas Rev. Sam Meyer Associate Pastor of Discipleship, MCC Joseph Smith Project Manager, E.E. Austin Brian R. Johansson, MPA President/CEO, Erie City Mission
Upcoming Events September 17, 2026 -- New Life Program Completion Ceremony October 15, 2026 -- Annual Celebration of New Life - FREE EVENT November 23, 2026 -- Box of Love, Thanksgiving Outreach November 25, 2026 -- Special Public Thansgiving Meal with Table Service November 28, 2026 -- Small Business Saturday at ECM Thrift stores December 23, 2026 -- Special Public Christmas Meal with Table Service Visit www.eriecitymission.org for more information on upcoming events.
The holidays are fast approaching, and we’d love for you to join us—from our Thanksgiving and Christmas luncheons to our annual Box of Love outreach, which will distribute 1,000 Thanksgiving meal packages to families across Erie. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read through this issue of The Beacon and see your generosity in action. Blessings,
A Major Milestone for the Haven For the past couple of years, we’ve shared our vision for a new Haven for Women and Children—a place where women and children in crisis can find safety, healing, and a path forward.
Ever wonder what really happens behind our doors? Now you can find out, one story at a time. The Erie City Mission is excited to announce its new podcast, “Beyond the Mission’s Doors,” hosted by our CEO, Brian Johansson. Visit eriecitymission.org to learn more and start listening today!
In late June, following a community conversation that drew strong local support, Millcreek’s Zoning Hearing Board approved our request to convert the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel School into the Haven, and we’re now under contract to purchase the 7-acre property, which will let us significantly expand our services for women and children in need. We’re hoping to close in late September, with renovations beginning in 2027 and our first families arriving by mid-2028—a big step forward we can’t wait to share more about.
Holidays AT THE
MISSION
A Season of Service
During the holidays, there’s no better place to feel hope than at the Erie City Mission. This season, thousands of our homeless and weary neighbors will find their way to the Mission, and we are ready to greet each one with a warm welcome. But our welcome offers more than a hot meal and a safe place to sleep—it also offers support and healing for hurting hearts. This holiday season, we invite you to join us in sharing that warmth with every man, woman, and child who enters our doors.
Pray
Give
Serve
Pray for our neighbors facing hunger, homelessness, and addiction this season, that they’ll encounter Christ’s hope and love within our walls, and that the Haven for Women and Children will be a reality, giving them a place to call home.
Fill a food bag or give toward our turkey purchase for Box of Love; bake a homemade pie for our Thanksgiving meal; or donate coats, hats, gloves, scarves, thermals, and socks for guests facing the cold. Become a monthly donor to support our mission year-round.
Join our volunteer team to help at the Mission during the holidays, including our Box of Love Thanksgiving outreach. Sign up to serve at one of our special restaurant-style-meals.
Visit www.eriecitymission.org to learn how you can join us in supporting our neighbors this holiday season.
On Monday, Nov. 23, the Erie City Mission will partner with hundreds of volunteers and community members to distribute more than 1,000 Thanksgiving meal packages, each feeding a family of four to five, to those who may need a little extra this season. Each package includes a full Thanksgiving dinner, a Bible, a handwritten card, and homemade cookies. Help us by packing love and hope into every meal package, volunteering during the outreach, or donating toward the purchase of turkeys. Visit eriecitymission.org or scan the QR code to learn how.
Join us for the Erie City Mission’s Celebration of New Life on Thursday, Oct. 15. Enjoy an evening of food and fellowship as we honor two graduates of our New Life Program with the Billy Sunday Life Transformation Award and share our growth and impact over the past year. This year also marks 115 years of service to Erie. This is a free event, and a formal invitation with more details will follow soon. Interested in sponsoring this year’s celebration, or have questions? Contact Libby Barber at 814-452-4421 x265 or lbarber@eriecitymission.org.
Urban University Students Head to the Nation’s Capital After two years of planning by Urban University program staff, students will be heading to Washington, D.C., May 6-9, 2027, for a trip that’s about far more than visiting the nation’s capital. For 14 students and nine adult mentors, it’s the culmination of months of study, leadership development, and personal investment. Through courses in history, civics, and government—including Constitutional Alive and Erie History Investigators— students have been preparing for this trip, learning the principles of freedom, self-government, and servant leadership that continue to shape the republic. “My interest in history and how our government works really grew after taking the Constitutional Literacy class through Urban University,” said Cassie, a 10th-grader. “The trip to Washington, D.C., will be a great opportunity for me to see and experience the places and monuments I’ve been learning about in person.”
Thank you to everyone who has invested in these students, helping shape a generation of leaders who understand where our nation has been so they can faithfully lead where it is going. Please pray for them as they continue to fundraise, learn, and prepare for this trip of a lifetime. If you feel led to support them, you can make a direct donation, use the Mission’s parking lot for a downtown event when students are there, or purchase something from their gallery of handcrafted goods. Visit eriecitymission.org to learn more or scan the QR code to make a donation right now.
It’s A Beautiful Day in Our While in Washington, students will visit memorials and Neighborhood monuments, including the Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Museum of the Bible, meet with congressional representatives and senators and take part in the wreathlaying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. To help fund the trip, students have staffed the Mission’s parking lot throughout the year for downtown events— baseball games, Warner Theatre shows, graduations, and more—sharing their story and collecting donations from guests who park with them. They’ve also partnered with local businesses including Chick-fil-A and continue to sell handcrafted items made during their programming, including at their Holiday Gallery Shops. The team is working to raise $38,000, and thanks to generous community support, they’ve already reached just over half of that goal.
We’re grateful to be part of a community where nonprofits help nonprofits. Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania stopped by on July 15 to drop off a brandnew fridge for our Lighthouse Dining Room, a gathering place for fellowship among current and past New Life Program participants, staff, and volunteers. The donation was made possible through the Feeding America Food Rescue Capacity Building Grant. God provides through many things, including the beauty of our neighborhood and the amazing people in it. Thank you, Second Harvest!
Because you gave... 39,581 meals were prepared and distributed to the public and our residents.
64
unique men received rehabilitation, recovery, and shelter through the New Life Program.
Giving Statistics for April-July 2026
19
unique women received rehabilitation, recovery, and shelter through the New Life Program at Grace House.
35,999 pounds of fresh food and nonperishable products were distributed through our pantry.
10,123 volunteer hours were contributed.
11,296
safe overnights were provided for men and women.