“Making a Difference in York, PA”
There
are many people in the York PA community who are in need. Many live in poverty, many struggle
with drug and alcohol abuse. Many
even have children with limited resources. These people are in need of help and there is a place
in York that has been helping these kinds of people for over 50 years, the York
Rescue Mission, located at 363 W. Market St. The Rescue Mission was founded in 1963 with the objective of
offering food, clothing, shelter, and spiritual guidance for the poor and needy
of York County. They currently operate with the same
objective and succeed at making a positive difference, both physically and
spiritually, in the lives of those in the area.
One
the main tasks of the mission is supplying meals to those in need. Through their men’s & women’s
program, as well as many other community outreach events, the York Rescue
Mission projects to serve over 200,000 this year. The mission is aided by many volunteers and partners
with many churches in the area to accomplish this. The most recent community outreach event was Family
Fest, held at Kiwanis Lake on August 3. Hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy, games for kids,
musical singing, and a message were all provided for free for those in the
community. One mother attending
Family Fest, Shania Fountain, has recently adopted 2 children in addition to
her three. She said, “The free
food really helps since I recently adopted two kids. The spiritual music is encouraging.”
The
men’s program is another focus of the York Rescue Mission. They provide housing for men who are in
need of physical and spiritual help. These men also attend bible studies, church services,
and participate in work projects.
One man who currently attends the program, Eric Harris, said this about
the Rescue Mission. “The York
Rescue Mission staff they are firm yet stern. Spiritual yet kind.
I enrolled in the Spiritual Program involving myself with work details,
devotions, Bible studies and church as well as in house community support. The York Rescue Mission is continually
helping me be part of the solution and not the problem.” Eric writes about his story, “In 1986,
I introduced myself to a new addiction - Crack. Due to my willingness to abuse alcohol and drugs. I gave my away my family, my sanity,
and had no sense of reality. He
goes on to write, “Lastly, today I can honestly say that my future is not
determined by my past. My thanks
to God Almighty and they York Rescue Mission.” Eric is just one example of the many men that have come
through the program and have been positively affected.
Another
man who is working to change lives and the environment is Matt Carey. Matt runs a recycling program at
the York Rescue Mission economy store.
He oversees men from the program that work to recycle metal, cardboard,
and clothes that come through as donations. This generates income for the Rescue Mission to continue to
help others as well as producing less waste to dispose of on a yearly
basis. Matt himself was a
former member of the Men’s program, and after a period time was asked to
oversee a significant part of the economy store. This is just another example of people who are getting help
and then moving forward to help others.
Another
recent outreach is the Back to School program. The Rescue Mission provides a change of clean clothes for
the children of the mothers who are in the women’s program. These new clothes help these children
to go to their first day of school feeling more positive about themselves and
their situation.
These
are just a few of the many ways that the York Rescue Mission promotes positive
change, both physically and spiritually, in the lives of those in York
County.
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