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Water Street Rescue Mission But we don’t stop with food and shelter; Water Street Rescue Mission is much more than a shelter in that we seek to address heart issues. We challenge clients to question the choices, behaviors, and patterns in their lives that may have brought them to their current state of need. It is our goal to foster an atmosphere of trust, accountability, and responsibility. We desire to act in the best interest of the resident.
Men’s Emergency Shelter This level of service provides a safe, healing environment where our guests will receive the essentials of life: at least seven nights of hot showers and warm beds, up to three meals per day, and clothing for those who need it.
We are committed to sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ to all who come to receive services, believing that life change is best when centered around Him. We work to check with each guest for interest in and readiness for one of our long-term programs.
Men’s Work Program Some guests have fallen into hardship and lost housing or jobs but do not have life debilitating issues. These men only need temporary, free or low-cost housing and an opportunity to find new employment in the community.
In our Work Program, the resident may live for free while engaged in his job search. Along with assistance in his search for employment, we provide specialized training to help him to be a good, long-term employee.
As the resident finds employment, he may choose to maintain his residency with low-cost, subsidized housing, during which time he will save for his transition back to the community.
This level of service suits well those coming out of prison who need assistance with their transition. Length of stay will be decided on an individual basis.
Men’s Christian Life Development Program For those struggling with addiction or other life-threatening problems, we offer an effective, spiritually based, long-term, addiction recovery and discipleship program. This 12-24 month program is an intensive mixture of: Weekly Individual Counseling Relapse Prevention Training Work Therapy/Employment Training Life Management Training Spiritual Development Training Weekly meetings with an offsite Mentor GED Computer Literacy Training Money Management Training Relationship Skills Training
Like the Men’s Work Program, when the resident finds employment he may choose to maintain his residency with low-cost, subsidized housing, during which time he will save for his transition back to the community.
Women’s Emergency Shelter This serves as a stabilization period for women and their children. The emergency shelter provides 30 days of warm, safe shelter, three meals a day and clothing. Clients are met with hope and love through daily Bible studies and chapel services. Ladies meet with a counselor during their first week here to assess needs and goals. Through partnerships with local organizations/agencies, we can clearly direct clients to the exact services they need most. Some of the most basic yet crucial help we offer is directing ladies to apply for social security cards, birth certificates, or their child’s last report card. These documents are essential for applying for jobs or enrolling children in school.
Women’s Program The desire of the Women’s Program is to foster an environment of accountability and responsibility while helping each woman grow in her desire to be a contributing member of society. Warm, safe shelter and three meals a day are generally provided for 2-3 months or longer based on appropriate needs and goals. While a woman is looking for work or an apartment, optional enrollment is available in WSRM’s Life Learning and Career Center (GED, computer literacy, and money management) as well as Recovery Workshops and Childcare Classes. Weekly sessions with a WSRM counselor include biblical counseling, case management, and discussions of needs and goals.
Playtime for children is provided during morning devotions, evening chapel, and during other WSRM classes in which a woman may enroll. A client is responsible for her children during all other times.
Our Women’s Ministries and Children’s Ministries are in a period of transition. We are currently assessing how we can maximize a lady’s time with us to best meet her needs.
Our long-term recovery program for women is called the Lydia Center. Click here for more details. The Family Shelter is one of the newest ways Water Street Rescue Mission is serving the community. It offers 10 family units where parents can stay with their children in an emergency situation. It is the first of its kind in Lancaster County!
Previously a dorm for men, the Family Shelter was renovated during the year-long project made possible by the Expanding Boundaries to Rescue Lives campaign. In December 2007, we welcomed our first family into the Family Shelter. Barbara had been becoming emotionally exhausted after two months of living with her three daughters in Water Street Rescue Mission’s Women Shelter while her three sons, who were too old to live in the Women’s Shelter, were sleeping in Barbara’s van, in churches, or at friends’ houses. Opening the first unit of our Family Shelter allowed Barbara's family to be united. After moving in, the family commented on how thankful they were for the simple things, like beds, showers, and clean clothes. The Family Shelter will allow us to serve four types of families for the first time:
We will open the remaining family units in stages, allowing us to respond to unique issues as they arise and to develop a program to fit the clients' needs. To serve families, we will capitalize on what we already do well: coordinating with local agencies for career development (Career Link's Ready to Work Program) and permanent housing (Tabor, The Lodge); providing on-site case management and Christian Counseling; and providing three meals a day and on-site medical/dental care for the unisured. Our goal is to help clients address the emotional, social and psychological impact of homelessness on their family. As we determine programming for the Family Shelter, we will also evaluate our ministry to homeless children to determine how we can best serve parents and their children during their stay at Water Street Rescue Mission. Residential Program Guidelines The Water Street Rescue Mission Residential Ministries’ programs of rescue and renewal to the homeless and hungry are centered around the person of Jesus Christ and assume and deliver a progression toward Christ likeness. Therefore, our services to the needy will be:
Learning and Career Center (LCC)
Many people who come to Water Street Rescue Mission misunderstand the importance of life-long learning. The LCC helps residents catch a vision for achieving more in life through learning. Pairing educational quality and life laboratory, the LCC is a place where broken people find hope and healing.
The Learning Center includes three phases: Academics (GED) Computer Literacy Money Management
The Career Center provides resume training, job interview skills, and job placement. Essentially the Career Center allows residents to choose a direction, get there and experience life there. We partner with community organizations to provide our residents the best possible career opportunities.
We’re proud of the diversity of our students, as we serve men and women with education ranges from grade school to those with Master’s Degrees. Approximately 40 students are enrolled in the LCC. The Wonder Club School Many families can't afford to provide their little ones with a sound, Biblical education, but that's what Wonder Club is all about! As a ministry of Water Street Rescue Mission, Wonder Club provides a quality, Biblically-based pre-school and kindergarten program for boys and girls in the cities of Lancaster and Columbia.
Curriculum
Learning Method
Special Guests
Field Trips
Vision and Mission For more information For more information about registering your child, please call Lorraine at (717) 394-9723.
Churches from the community conduct services at WSRM’s chapel 365 nights a year. Residents as well as community members attend these services.
The Chapel was renovated into a multi-use facility through a renovation project we completed in Spring 2007.
As seen in the newspaper recently, this Chapel is now also the site of the Community Homeless Outreach Center (CHOC) – a safe place during the day where the homeless can rest, shower, launder clothing, and receive help with accessing human services. It serves as a single point of entry for someone to access the services that can direct them toward stability and housing.
In 2002 when we developed plans to renovate our Chapel into a multi-purpose chapel, conversations about CHOC had not yet started. We believe God stirred our hearts back in 2002 to renovate our chapel in this capacity so that it could be available to the homeless as an outreach center today.
CHOC is made possible by several organizations working together to maximize strengths. Water Street Rescue Mission believes we can accomplish more for the homeless by working together, and we are excited to offer a safe place for homeless guests to connect with others and be encouraged on their path toward housing and stability. Many people in the community reside in their own homes or apartments but live just one or two paychecks from homelessness. It is our desire to help meet basic needs while building relationships that may allow us to provide help in deeper ways.
Weekly Food Distribution We offer two, weekly food distributions and two weekly bread/pastry distributions for people living in the community. Food varies based on what has been donated but may consist of fresh fruits and vegetables, bread, pastries, or canned foods. Guests may come once a week for food distributions and twice a week for bread/pastry distribution.
Holiday Food Boxes In partnership with local churches, Water Street Rescue Mission distributes over 2,000 Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas food boxes each year. Recipients pre-register for these food boxes and receive different amounts of food based on the number of individuals living in their household. Local churches are a crucial link in the holiday food distributions, as they have the capacity to build individual relationships with those receiving food.
The Gift Outlet The Gift Outlet was opened after the decision to close the Lancaster Thrift Store in December 2005. This change allowed us to deepen the effectiveness of our service to the homeless by expanding ministries like the Learning Center and the medical/dental clinic while still providing items to people in need.
With enough volunteer support, the Gift Outlet will provide clothing and furniture at no cost to community members who are referred by a church or social service agency. The goal is to meet basic needs while developing relationships that may lead to further opportunities.
Currently the Gift Outlet provides clothing and furniture to WSRM clients. Often clients come to us with nothing more than the clothing they are wearing. It is at these times that the Gift Outlet provides clothing. When a client successfully moves into his/her own apartment, the Gift Outlet is then able to help furnish their new home.
Our work cannot continue without the generosity of our friends and neighbors who contribute though our Collection Center. The items we receive here are distributed to residents as they transition from the Mission into the community and to the Gift Outlet*. Thank you for adhering to the following donation guidelines:
We gladly accept your donations at the Collection Center during the following hours: Monday: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Located on Conestoga Street, perpendicular to Prince Street and Water Street) **To arrange a furniture pick-up, please call (717) 393-7709. Sorry - pick-up is not available in all areas.
Partnership with Auction Inn As of April 2007, Water Street Rescue Mission is working in partnership with Auction Inn to sell antique or unique items online! The proceeds of the sales will benefit Water Street Rescue Mission. If you have items that fall into these categories, please drop them off at Auction Inn, 241 West Lemon Street, Lancaster. You can schedule a donation pick up or discuss your item’s value by calling Auction Inn at (717) 509-6592.
Note: When dropping off an item at Auction Inn, please be sure to designate that your donation is in honor of Water Street Rescue Mission.
Suggested items for sale through Auction Inn: Antiques – Collectibles – Musical Instruments – Electronics – Cameras – Automobile Parts – Sporting Goods – Exercise Equipment – Hobby Equipment -- Machinery The kitchen at Water Street Rescue Mission is always busy as we make and serve three meals a day, 365 days a year! On average, we provide about 450 meals daily to residents and community members. A majority of the food we serve is donated through individuals, businesses and restaurants.
We hold an Annual Fall Food Drive from October through December each year. Through this effort, the community blesses us with enough canned goods to meet our kitchen needs for the majority of the following year!
We gladly welcome donations any time of year, including fresh meat, fruits, and vegetables, at our Food Dock between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. daily.
Sometimes we receive food from companies in larger quantities than we can use before it spoils. We have developed relationships with churches and agencies who also offer meals or food banks in Lancaster County, and in these cases we pass the food onto them. None of it spoils and more people are fed!
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Water
Street Rescue Mission • 210 South Prince Street • P.O. Box
7267 • Lancaster, PA 17604
Phone: 717.393.7709 • Fax: 717.393.4966 • Email: wsrm@wsrm.org |
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