With a college degree, a job at a local university,and a place of her own, Yvonne and her young son, Aaron, had a pretty good life. But then the college phased out her position and let her go. Then her two unemployed adult children, plus her daughter’s own child, moved in with her. Things went bad very quickly.

Yvonne started a homebased business, but it barely paid the bills. State assistance helped a little, until California’s budget crisis put an end to that. Family conflict made things even worse. “My adult children were emotionally abusive,” Yvonne says. “They would insult Aaron and me, or push him around. Then my middle son and oldest daughter got in a fight and the police came.” A week later, housing authorities expelled Yvonne and Aaron from their home. Shockingly, Yvonne’s middle son had reported his mother to housing!

“I was so stupid,” she says. “But sometimes you have to learn the hard way.”

Then, a friend told Yvonne about the Village of Hope. She and Aaron moved in last fall. “The worst thing about being homeless was Aaron had to give up music lessons,” Yvonne says. “He misses that. But we’re not on the streets. It’s a blessing to be here. We were divinely rescued by God.

“I’m kind of ornery,” Yvonne laughs. “Tell me I can’t do something and I’ll say, ‘Yes I can.’ With the help I’m getting here, I’ll be successful. I know I will.”

Imagine the impact you can have when your generosity does two times as much good!

In this economy, we all could use some good news about money for a change. And here it is: A group of long-time supporters has offered the Orange County Rescue Mission a generous matching grant. This means your gift will automatically double in value, up to $20,000! When every $1 you give becomes $2 in life-changing support for the Mission, this is the best time in months to give that generous gift you may have been thinking about. A gift of $25 is now worth $50. A generous gift of $100 turns into $200 worth of food, clothing, shelter and other help for people in need. Think of what that means to homeless and hungry people all over Orange County!

• Twice as many meals.
• Twice as many nights of safe shelter.
• Twice as many chances to break free from addiction.

And perhaps best of all, it means twice as many people like Mitchell have the chance for a new life — with God at the center. Mitchel has been overcoming challenges his whole life. As a child, he was shuttled back and forth between divorced parents. At age 16, he entered the foster care system after being physically abused by his father. Leaving foster care at 19, Mitchel had to go to work to support himself. After three years on his own, Mitchel was doing okay. But last November, his employer was hit hard by the economy’s sudden decline. Without warning, Mitchel was laid off.

The timing couldn’t have been worse: in less than a week, the lease was expiring on his home. With no income and little savings, Mitchel had no choice but to spend his days looking for work and his nights sleeping in his car. But even that option was taken away when Mitchel’s car broke down and he couldn’t afford repairs.

That was when a friend told him about the Orange County Rescue Mission. Today, Mitchel is in our men’s program, and is living at the Village of Hope. For the first time in his life, he can focus on saving money and getting an education. He’s attending a local college, where he plans to earn his bachelor’s degree. Then, he hopes to achieve his childhood dream of becoming a pilot in the U.S. Air Force.

“I didn’t expect to lose everything so quickly,” Mitchel says. “Being at the Village of Hope is a real blessing. It’s a chance to do what I was never able to do on my own.”

Thank you for all you do. Your generosity is making an immediate and eternal difference in life after life. And now, with this matching grant offer, you have the chance to make your generosity go twice as far! Please send a gift today.

This month, we begin a multipart series as Josh describes the journey that led him to the Orange County Rescue Mission.

Six years ago, a friend and I left Virginia; just us, a work van and our tools. I was on a path to destruction with crack cocaine, and had to get away. We headed out on I-40, working, panhandling and partying through Tennessee and Arkansas. When the van broke down in Oklahoma, I spent two weeks just doing drugs. I left Virginia to get away from this, but it had all come with me.

I went to rehab in Perry, Oklahoma. I was there three months and was doing really well, but I made a mistake: I met a girl, and left the program to go to Oklahoma City with her. I got work at a trucking company. I also helped remodel my boss’s house and he let me sleep there. It was a good way to save money, but I used that money for partying so it didn’t really help me. My boss finally said I couldn’t party around his family, so I left.

A guy named James and I decided to head to New Orleans and get in on home repair right after Katrina. We got down there and I was sleeping in my van one afternoon. James jumps in and tears off down the street with cops right behind us! They stop us, pull me out, and cuff me. James had stolen some lady’s purse. Just because I was in the van, I was looking at three felonies. I thought, “I’m going to spend the rest of my life in a Louisiana prison.”

Next month: Josh tries to take his own life!

The Hermann Foundation, which has its headquarters in Worcester, Massachusetts, has consistently supported the efforts of human service organizations that assist the poor and youth in Massachusetts, Maine and California. Founded by Françoise Hermann at the turn of the century in memory of her beloved father, the Hermann Foundation focuses its grant making in five primary areas: education, health and human services, culture and the arts, civic and environmental issues.

The Hermann Foundation has been a generous and loyal supporter of the Orange County Rescue Mission since 2005. Funding from the foundation has helped the Rescue Mission deliver case management services and health care to families and individuals living in poverty motels in Orange County, provide mobile educational services to the poor, construct the Village of Hope, and most recently, provide core support for the ongoing daily operations of the Village of Hope, a 192 bed transitional housing program for homeless men, women and children.

Correspondence with the Hermann Foundation always indicates a gracious attitude toward giving to the Rescue Mission and a desire to make a difference in the lives of those who are often “not seen” in our community: the poor living in run-down motels, children who have dim futures because of poverty, and the homeless who desire a better life.

We want to publically acknowledge the Hermann Foundation for its support of the Orange County Rescue Mission and to express our gratitude for the partnership that helps deliver pressing human services as well as hope to so many people.

Alicia Sheen is currently a medical student at the UCI Medical School. She is taking a year off after her second year of studies and will be returning to complete her third and fourth years in June. Although Alicia hasn't decided yet what area of medicine to specialize in, she told us that she trusts that God will lead her as she gains experience by rotating around the different specializations over the next year.

Alicia wanted to use some of her year off to volunteer in a full time capacity, so she prayed for God to reveal how she could best serve people in our community. As a result, she found the Orange County Rescue Mission Web site and our Volunteer Opportunities page. Two volunteer opportunities stood out; “Child Development Worker” and “Adult Tutor.” Alicia knew that these would be a good match for both her interest in children and her teaching skills.

Since the beginning of January, Alicia has been working in the Child Development Center where she volunteers in the Learning Center every weekday morning from 8:30 a.m. until noon teaching pre-school math and language to anywhere between 12 and 18 children. She told us that there are several other volunteers who assist her and that the number of children can vary greatly from day-to-day. Every weekday afternoon, from 12:00 until 2:00 p.m., she teaches a variety of High-School subjects to a woman who is expecting to take her GED shortly.

She has the greatest admiration for the staff and volunteers she works with, but Alicia's major benefit from volunteering for the Rescue Mission is the inspiration she receives from working with the families, especially the single parents. “They are so determined,” she said. “The single parents have such busy lives, children to look after, their school studies, the jobs they have to do around the Village of Hope, while struggling against the emotional after-effects of drug or alcohol addiction and often, sadly, domestic violence.”

Alicia told us that the Village of Hope lives up to its name in that it genuinely is an island of hope for the homeless. She added, “There needs to be more Villages of Hope, more places like that, in other places because it is a model that really works.” Alicia explained, “The great thing about the Rescue Mission is that it doesn't just provide housing, food and support, but gives people dignity and the tools they need to live successfully and independently for the rest of their lives.”

Alicia concluded by saying, “I am very privileged to have had the opportunity to volunteer for the Orange County Rescue Mission. It produces amazing changes in the lives of the residents, but also changes the hearts of the volunteers. I would very much like to thank all the wonderful people I've met during my activities there.”

Although Alicia will be returning to her medical studies at the beginning of June, she aspires to assist in the on site Medical Clinic during her outplacement.

We thank Alicia for her gift of time and skill to the Rescue Mission and wish her God's very finest blessings for her future career in medicine.

Erin Touslee, Director of Mission Programs for Komen for the Cure Orange County, recently sent the following message to the Orange County Rescue Mission in gratitude for OCRM's recognition of Komen's ongoing support of homeless men, women and children:

Thank you for the beautifully framed certificate of recognition and the write-up of the article in your newsletter. I shared both with the staff and have placed the frame in my office. We wouldn’t be able to succeed in fulfilling our Mission without the support and efforts of your Organization. Together, we are improving the health and saving the lives of women in Orange County.

Thank you, Komen for the Cure Orange County!

In Yvonne’s story above, you’ll encounter something we’ve been seeing more and more of lately. It’s someone who is pushed into homelessness, at least in part, by California’s budget problems and our nation’s weak economy. The dramatic downturn since last fall has added a new wrinkle to the challenges so many poor people are facing. On top of problems like addiction or abuse, folks who had been living on the edge of financial survival are now being pushed over that edge into homelessness.

That’s why, in the middle of so much bad news, it’s great to be able to announce at least one way you can get more for your money instead of less! Because of a special matching grant, your gift will go two times as far and provide twice as much help for people in need. It’s a powerful stewardship opportunity for you, and a real blessing for the men, women and children who are looking to us for help.

God’s goodness truly multiplies, and you are part of His wonderful equation! Thank you for your generosity!.

In His service,

If you do your regular shopping at Albertsons or Ralphs, you can help provide support to the homeless. Just register your Albertsons Preferred Savings and Ralphs Rewards cards, select the Orange County Rescue Mission and percentage of every purchase you make thereafter will be donated to OCRM to assist us in bringing hope to the Least, the Last and the Lost.

TAKE UP THE CHALLENGE and SIGN UP TODAY!! If just 60 people sign up and use your Albertsons Preferred Savings and/or Ralphs Rewards cards, and the average quarterly shopping percentage brings in a modest $3.15 each, then those 60 people could make $756.00 a year! JUST BY DOING OUR OWN GROCERY SHOPPING! Of course, the more you purchase, the more you earn for OCRM. (We'll keep you updated on the quarterly progress!)

Click the following links to sign up:

Albertsons Community Partners (Enter ID # 49000125638)
Ralphs Community Contribution (Enter Non Profit Organization # 91204)

Thank you!