New Blog & New Website

Charlotte Rescue Mission's blog has moved. We have integrated it with our new web design. This blog will remain open for archival purposes. Please visit our website and let us know what you think of the new design.

Pantry Pounding

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- It used to be that after couples got married, there was a good old-fashioned pantry pounding to help fill the pantry.

"People would bring a pound of sugar, a pound of flour, all the essentials, so that when they got ready to start their life that was taken of care for them," said Lynn Swisshelm, who works with the Charlotte Rescue Mission. Full Story & Video on WCNC

Help us stock our pantry this summer as we prepare for the busy Fall & Winter months! Also see the story on:

MSNBC

Charlotte Center City Partners

News 14 Interviews Rev. Marciano Regarding Our "Pantry Pounding"

Charlotte Rescue Mission is hosting an old fashioned "Pantry Pounding" to store up food supplies for the upcoming Fall & Winter months. News 14 recently interviewed Tony Marciano on the subject. See the video here.

Rev. Marciano Interviewed by Rev. Chadwick

Rev. David Chadwick, head pastor of Forest Hill Church interviewed Rev. Tony Marciano on 6/7/2009. You can hear the podcast here.

Volunteers Serve Easter at the Mission

From WSOC:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Volunteers spent Easter morning in the kitchen, cooking up breakfast at the Charlotte Rescue Mission.

The agency is holding an all-day Easter Extravaganza for the community.

The event kicked off at 6 a.m. Sunday with breakfast at the agency’s building located on the corner of Cedar Street and West First Street.

See the rest of the article and video here. News 14 also had a video and story which can be found here.

Volunteers Needed for Easter

We still need about 30 volunteers for our Easter Holiday meal, especially for our 12:30 - 3:30 shift. If you are interested, please call or email Andria Tindall as soon as possible to volunteer. You may reach her at 704-334-4635 x214.

Why I Work at Charlotte Rescue Mission

Every once in a while, I remember why I work here at Charlotte Rescue Mission. It’s usually when God somehow reminds me. This morning I got one of those reminders.

I answered my phone and the gentleman on the other end of the line identified himself as a former client. He told me he had graduated from Rebound 22 years ago and he’s still sober. “I’ve done pretty well,” he said. “As a matter of fact, I’ve done well enough that now I think I’m in a position where I can pay you back. I’d like to know how much it costs, per night, to have a client go through your program. I realize it probably costs a bit more now than it did 22 years ago, but if you’ll let me know I’d like to donate back for my time spent there.”

I didn’t have an answer right away, but I’ve figured it out since the phone call, for you see, this man agreed to give me some time to figure it out and then call back at 4 this afternoon, so I can give him an accurate number. He wishes to remain anonymous.

By the way, the answer to his question is $56.41 per night (based on our total program costs for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, divided by our available 146 beds per night x 365 nights in a year). So a 90-day stay is $5,076.90 (although this is strictly program cost and does not reflect Administrative or Fundraising expenses).

I have no idea if he can afford to donate that much. Of course that will be his decision. But God has reminded me, through him, why I’m here everyday. He still works miracles, through all of us.

Miracles

Let me tell you about a miracle.

In addition to the hundreds of meals and nights of safe shelter our donors provide, their gifts are changing lives. I heard it from a former client. I ran into him in the church parking lot. He greeted me and told me it had been over 18 months since he finished the Mission’s Rebound program. No one in church that Sunday knew that just over a year ago, the streets had been his life. It is through the generous support of our donors that that he is able to make that chapter of his life a part of his past.

Just like him, there are hundreds of men and women who have graduated from the Mission, whose life has been forever changed because someone cared.

Baking Instead of Bullying

Over 120 students and staff members of University Park Elementary school contributed to our Thanksgiving day feast by baking about 200 dessert items as a part of "Bullying Prevention Week". Charlotte Observer has the story:

“Our staff decided that we would observe Bullying Prevention Week by teaching students how they should treat others,” said Carrie Sargent, school psychologist at University Park, a performing arts magnet school off Beatties Ford Road in northwest Charlotte.

Read the whole story here.

Rev. Billy Graham's Letter

Many of you probably already know that Franklin Graham, father of evangelist Billy Graham, was one of Charlotte Rescue Mission's founders in 1938.

In honor of our 70th year, Rev. Billy Graham has written a letter acknowledging his father's involvement. Our newsletter contains the letter so if you are on our mailing list, you've probably already seen it. If not, click here to request a free copy of the letter.

Volunteers Serve on Thanksgiving Day

News 14 Carolina published the following story regarding the volunteer servers on Thanksgiving day:

CHARLOTTE – Although the Charlotte Rescue Mission has been serving meals for the past 70 years, volunteers pulled out all the stops Thursday for a special Thanksgiving.

About 30 employees from the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille worked in the kitchen cooking and in the dining room serving.

"We're actually bringing tableside service so people can have the opportunity to order eggs however they want and actually pick off a small menu," Chris Alves, of the Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, said.

Read the whole article here.

Thanksgiving at the Mission

Not everyone gets a chance to come down to the mission for a holiday so many of our supporters don't know what it's like. Last year, we broke a record for number of meals served in one day and we expect to break it again this year. Here is a video we made last year to share what it is like:

Dedication of the Pavilion

On November 11, 2008 we dedicated our new pavilion area at our main campus located in uptown Charlotte. This pavilion was made possible by the Carolina Panthers, Al & Judy Oldja, Jerry & Lynn Swisshelm, Concrete Supply Co and Shelco Inc. Below you can see a video of this dedication and a before and after photo.

Cold Weather Affecting Local Shelters

The Charlotte Observer posted this story today on the recent cold weather and its effect on local homeless shelters.

Officials opened the Emergency Winter Shelter near uptown in October – a month earlier than previous years – to help homeless men escape the cold.

One night earlier this week, the shelter served more than 300 meals – the largest number ever on a non-holiday.

The average number of meals served at the shelter has jumped to 225 a night from 165 two years ago, said Tony Marciano, executive director of the Charlotte Rescue Mission, which provides for the shelter.

If you include the meals at Rebound & Dove's Nest, the number we served was actually over 700 meals that day.

Volunteers At Dove's Nest

Erin shares her recent volunteer experience at Dove's Nest. Thanks Erin!

Never Too Young to Help

At the mission, we always have wonderful success stories to share about our clients but it seems like every year we have at least one or two heart warming stories from our supporters as well - especially around the holidays.

If you read our newsletter, you may remember the story of a young girl who sells lemonade each year and donates the proceeds to the mission. This year, we received the following flyer in the mail from an eight year old named Sylvia along with her very generous donation. Sylvia typed this flyer up herself and handed them out in her neighborhood to raise money for the mission. We thought we'd share it with you to show that it's never too early to get involved with helping others and every amount is appreciated. Thank you Sylvia!

Is It Too Early For Christmas Shopping?

If you're like most people these days - you probably responded with an emphatic "yes!" After all, we haven't even reached Thanksgiving yet and just barely finished with Halloween.

But I'm not talking about shopping for family, I'm talking about shopping for those who don't have a family. I'm thinking of those who probably don't have anyone shopping for them at all.

Our annual Christmas catalog is a great project for a small church group or office team to do just that. You can download and print this PDF and put together a drive with your small group to do some Christmas shopping for those less fortunate even if it seems quite early. While we are certainly in the middle of heavy preparations for Thanksgiving, we're already looking ahead to Christmas.

The Holidays are a critical fund raising period for us. In these next two months alone, we need to raise nearly 40% of our annual budget.

Thank You Note From a Mother

Let me share a “thank you” from a mother whose son was provided hope: “I have a son who recently became a resident there, and am so gratified to know that he is there. I would like to do something to help and this Amy Grant/Vince Gill concert seems to be an event that our family would love to attend. I worked in this field in various places, some of which are now closed. I am very thankful that there is still a place like Charlotte Rescue Mission to help folks with the life-robbing problem of addiction. God bless all of you there and many thanks for helping my son.”

Weather & Economy Affecting Demand for Shelters

Last night, WCNC aired this story on how the weather and economy are affecting the demand for homeless shelters in Charlotte. Cold temperatures have arrived in Charlotte earlier than usual and combined with economic uncertainty and a housing crisis, this means increased demand for local homeless shelters.

Tony Burbeck reports:

At the Charlotte Rescue Mission, hot meals cooked here then given to the Emergency Winter Shelter for men are up 30 percent.

"Sometimes it becomes harder for people that are in crisis to either get jobs or hold onto jobs,” said Rev. Tony Marciano.

It's important to realize two things about Charlotte Rescue Mission. While we are affected by the economy and to some degree the weather, our beds stay full year round. We always have a waiting list. But on the other hand, as WCNC reported, we do feel the increased demand of food preparation this time of the year because we prepare the meals for the Emergency Winter Shelter.

Like anyone else, the economic impact for us can be significant. We rely entirely on private donations as we do not accept any government or United Way funding.

What Happens to Clients After CRM?

We're often asked about our clients and what happens to them after they complete the program. Our supporters are thrilled to learn that after a year, over 70% are still living a clean and sober life. But the statistics can't reflect the stories we see every day behind the scenes - the ones that aren't necessarily publicized.

Just the other day, a former client stopped by the mission (this happens regularly). Graduating from Rebound in the late 90s, he is now a successful businessman with his masters degree. In fact, he is currently working on his Ph. D.

It's not every day that a former client walks in but it does happen and we're always excited to learn about the success they have gone on to achieve.