True-Life Stories of God’s Provision Through You! November ...

Good News and Great Joy This Holiday Season!

True-Life Stories of God’s Provision Through You!

Please visit us at milmission.org830 North 19th Street, Milwaukee, WI 53233

November / December 2019

Hope and a Future The Joy of Christmas Thriving Again3 4 8

Dear Friend,

Joy. If there’s one word that describes our aspiration for all who come to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, 365 days a year, it’s “joy.” But it’s never more profound than in the weeks leading up to Christmas, when we celebrate the “good news” that a new king has been born. The “good news” of a Savior who will redeem the world. The “good news” that our Lord and Creator has come to give us—as Armando says in his story on page 3—”hope and a future.”

Yes, the holiday season is a special time of year, but it’s also a challenging one. This year has been tough on Milwaukee as we’ve seen many more people in need of shelter and coming through our doors. The needs of those on the street today are greater than ever—which can make their Christmas celebration all the more joyful and triumphant once they have finally found warmth, shelter and love after coming to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission.

In fact, I wish you could experience the joy inside the Milwaukee Rescue Mission for yourself this holy time of year. I wish you could see the special holiday meals, the warmth and care, and all the Christmas decorations and presents that mean so much to people who are homeless and hurting. But most of all, I wish you could see the faces of all the men, women and children who truly know what the spirit of Christmas is all about, faces filled with the joy and the promise of eternal life—because of a baby born in a manger.

Whether you’re a donor or a volunteer or a prayer warrior on behalf of the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, those faces are filled with joy because God used you to help make it all possible. And on their behalf, I want to say thank you...and Merry Christmas.

Sincerely,

Patrick H. Vanderburgh, D.Min. President

Dr. Patrick H. Vanderburgh President

FACES FILLED WITH CHRISTMAS JOY

2Milwaukee Rescue Mission

19.11 MIS48957 (2019MRMNLK422) MRM NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER INSIDE PGS 2 & 3 ALL

“ Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”

—Luke 2:10 (NIV)

That’s what your donations to the Milwaukee

Rescue Mission did for me. God used you to

give me a future and hope when I had none.

You gave me the chance to live again. You gave

me a Christmas I will never forget.

This Christmas Eve, it will be one year since I entered

the New Journey program here at the Milwaukee

Rescue Mission. That first Christmas, everything

changed for me. From now on, the day we celebrate

the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, I will celebrate my

own rebirth and new life as a child of God.

No one needed that new life more than me. For more

than 25 years, I sold drugs and ran with violent gangs

from New York to Chicago to Milwaukee. We hurt a

lot of people, and I hated it. But it’s all I knew.

By 2014, I was a heroin addict myself. I had a wife and

kids, and I stopped running with the gangs, but my

life kept getting worse. I couldn’t find a job, I couldn’t

pay bills, I couldn’t take care of my family, I couldn’t

do the things a man is supposed to do. I felt worthless.

Two years ago, my heroin addiction got so bad, my

wife and kids left me.

For a long time, I gave up on life. I felt like I had no

future and there was nothing else to live for. But then

I came to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission. That first

Christmas, it was like Jesus looked me in the eyes and

said, “I see you, Armando, and I’ve come to give you

hope and a future.” I gave my life to him that day,

and I have walked with him every day since.

Today, I have hope again and I have a new purpose:

I want to be the best father I can be for my kids,

I want to be a productive citizen and I want to love

others like Jesus has loved me.

www.milmission.org

HOPE AND A FUTURE FOR CHRISTMASby Armando


“ Today, I have hope again and I have a new purpose...”

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This Christmas season, we’re counting on friends like you to help provide new, unwrapped gifts for hundreds of children in our community. Please drop off toys and gift items for infants through teens at the Milwaukee Rescue Mission.

Where: 830 N. 19th Street, Milwaukee, WI 53233 When: Mon – Sat, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. by December 6 $10 minimum value, please.

For more information, call (414) 344-2211

m New toys for children (infants to teens)

mWatches & jewelry

mPerfumes/cologne

m Lotions

mSoaps & loofahs

mWomen’s robes & slippers

m Wallets

m Gift cards

m Wrapping paper, gift bags and tissue paper—we need enough to wrap hundreds of gifts!

New Toys Needed

Last Christmas...

Our Christmas Wish List

Every Child Deserves a Christmas Gift!

...Children in our programs and throughout our community received thousands of toys, games and stuffed animals, thanks to caring people like you!

...Men, women and children at the Milwaukee Rescue Mission received hundreds of new hats, gloves and scarves to keep them warm in the elements, because of your generosity!

THE JOY OF CHRISTMAS LIVES HERE— THANKS TO YOU!

...Your support helped us to serve a special Christmas dinner to all the women and children in Joy House and men in our Safe Harbor Programs!

...More than 200 special holiday food baskets were distributed to families of our students and program graduates, as well as those in need in our community— thanks to you!

THE JOY OF CHRISTMAS LIVES HERE— THANKS TO YOU!

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Thanks to generous people like you,

precious men, women and children at the

Milwaukee Rescue Mission can experience

genuine hope and the joy of Christmas

because they know they have not been

forgotten. This holiday season, let’s

make it one they’ll never forget!


Make the season more memorable by shopping through our 2019 Christmas Gift Catalog. Your gift of food, shelter and other resources can make all the difference to homeless and hungry men, women and children.

Visit www.milmissiongiving.org

Every time you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the same convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission. To shop at AmazonSmile, simply go to smile.amazon.com and choose the Milwaukee Rescue Mission as your charity of choice.

Share a bag of “Mission Joe” from Stone Creek Coffee! One-pound bags ($10) and MRM mugs ($5) are sold in our visitors’ lobby, Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Many Milwaukee-area employers have a matching gift program—some employers will match every $1 an employee gives to charity. This Christmas, ask if your employer offers to match charitable gifts, and make your own gift go TWICE as far! Or check our website at www.milmission.org/employer-matching-gifts for a list of some of the organizations that offer a matching gift program.

If you are an employee of one of the many private organizations that participate in the United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, you can support MRM by giving through your workplace. By designating your gift to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission (listed as #50625), you will help transform the lives of men, women and children struggling with hunger and homelessness this fall and winter.

SHELTER A HOMELESS NEIGHBOR FOR A WEEK

PROVIDE HOT MEALS FOR 10 HUNGRY SOULS

$122.50 $20.40

with a2019 Christmas Gift Catalog

Restore dignity and hope for neighbors in crisis

GIFTS MISSION

MRM Benefit Concert: Handel’s Messiah

Give a Gift That Will Change a Life

Double Your Gifts!Please Choose MRM

Shop on AmazonSmile and Support MRM!Give “Mission Joe” Coffee!

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Two performances of Handel’s Messiah, by the Milwaukee Area Messiah Community Choir and Orchestra, will benefit MRM. The first performance will be Friday, December 6th, at 7:30 p.m. at St. Anthony on the Lake, and the second performance will be on Sunday, December 8th at 3 p.m. at Crossroads Presbyterian Church. Great music and a worthy cause!

www.milmission.org

IN MEMORY OF: Our deepest sympathies are with those who have lost a loved one. A memorial gift to MRM is a special way to offer hope to the hurting in the name of a friend or family member.

Steve Babinec

Mary Ann Becker

Archie Beissell

Judy Joy-Belke

Badri Prasad Bhandari

Dr. Burt Bloch

Margaret Bluma

Joseph Booth

Ruth Brehmer

Jason M. Brown

Marilyn Brown

Mel Brunner

Lionel (John) Brylow

Marilyn Charlson

David P. Chyla

Terika Cobb

Catherine A. Cobb

Michael Connor

Sharon D’Amico

Keith Richard Drinkwater

Henry Dupor

John Egan

Lucille Faust

Jerome Feller

Andrew H. Ferber

James (Jim) Fischbach

Mitchell Fischer

Dorothy Fletcher

Josephine Franckowiak

Erni & Lena Franzen

Nerita Leota Fredrick

Frank Galinsky

Jesse Ryan Gamache

David

Henry W. Gerner

Howard Gnewikow

Donna Grosenick

Tony Hahn

Nancy Hardin

Greyson Hartje

Mary Jo Hartwig

Mark Hayes

Chuck Herbst

Thomas Herrick

Lisa Hoffmann

David Joseph Holly

Gordon Jensen

Bruce E. Johnson

Jim Kessen

Grandparents

Elly Kitzinger

Jacklyn Koch

Mark (Kolly) Kollakowsky

Nancy Krueger

Robert & Dorothy Kruger

Marion Kuechle

Jerome (Jerry) Laurent

Carol Lehmann

Elaine Livingston

Linda Long

Ronald G. Lopez

Ciara Loppnow

Gertrude Lorenz

Evelyn Malkowski

Virginia (Ginny) Mayer

William McGair, Jr.

Patrick McGrane

Laura McManus

Jerome Meyer

Mary Ann Mitchell

Deanna Mlynczak

Thora Moen

Bill & Vera Muir

Anita Nalencz

Patricia (Patti) Neilon

Joseph (Joe) Noel

Eileen Nowak

Anthony Orlando

Robbin Ottman

Robert Parenteau

Cedric Parish

Coriona Payne

John & Gussie

Donald Peterson

Gino Pezzin

Janice Plumitis

Florence Przybyla

My Mom

Jim Ramus

Edward Regal

James (Jim) Reinders

Norm & Joyce Robers

Diane Robers

Majorie Robinson

Wency Roman

Ronald Romanowich

Gerald Ruehlow

Lenore Ruka

Elizabeth Schmitt

Carol Schnoeder

Krishana Sharma

Evelyn Shea

Wallace Shymanski

Leandros (Lee) Sideras

Harold W. Stanfield

Charlene Steiner

Gunther (Gunner) Stenzel

Ione P. Stock

Jo Stout

Helen Tarasinski

Beverly Joan Teter

Brian Thiede

Robert (Robb) Tilley

Richard (Dick) Trinkl

Paul G. Vaher

Roy J. Vandenberg

Mary Jane Wathaw

Our Parents

Elaine Wolff

Dorothy Bein

Ron and Mary 60th Anniversary

Attorney John Birdsall

Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Boyce

Peter Callen

David and Samia Campbell

Marianne Connor

Dr. and Mrs. Francis Cook’s 50th Wedding Anniversary

Nora

Robert and Heidi Ewert

Maryann Goodman’s 90th Birthday

All God’s Creation

Mark Herte

Sophia Lee

Sister Andrea Lee, President of Alverno College

Savion Lewis

George F. Moss

Stacey Newcomera’s birthday

Betty Pauling

Our Lord Jesus Christ

Alicia and Aaron

Marjorie Vukelich’s Birthday

John

IN HONOR OF: A gift to MRM is a great way both to provide hope and to remember a birthday, anniversary or other special occasion!

The names published on this page represent gifts to the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, received from August 1 through September 30, 2019, greater than or equal to $25.

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MEMORIAL & IN HONOR OF GIFTS

✃

MY GIFT TO HONOR SOMEONE SPECIAL

Please designate my gift in honor of _____________________________________________________________________

OR in memory of _____________________________________________________________________

Please return this slip along with your gift and the enclosed remit.

Throughout Maria’s life, abuse followed her wherever she went. When she was a child, it was so bad she was placed in foster care for five years. But the damage was already done.

“By high school, I was so starved for love, I dropped out of school to live with the first guy who showed me any kind of affection,” she says. “But he soon started to abuse me, and I ended up going from relationship to relationship with men who treated me just like I’d been treated my whole life.”

By her early 30s, Maria had three kids and was on her own for the first time. She started working, got an apartment and was doing well. Until last year, when she met another man.

“I thought he was different,” she says. “He seemed nice. But he turned out more abusive than all the others.”

Finally, last February, Maria escaped with her kids and came to Joy House.

“I was never religious before, but Joy House staff showed me how much God loves me and used the Bible to show me how to live my life in a more godly way,” she says. “They provided me with everything I needed to survive—even thrive. They showed me how to take care of finances, helped me with my parenting and even helped me learn more about healthy relationships.”

Today, Maria is living on her own again with her kids—but they aren’t alone! Through your support, MRM is able to continue to help with food, school supplies, clothing and all the support they need to thrive.

“As a donor, you made a life-changing difference for me and my family,” Maria says. “This Christmas, I thank God for you!”

830 N. 19th Street | Milwaukee, WI 53233 (414) 344-2211 | www.milmission.org

MISSION STATEMENT Sharing God’s love by caring for those who are poor in body, mind and spirit, to see lives transformed through Christ to hope, joy and lasting productivity.

THRIVING AGAIN—THANKS TO YOU! BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Patrick H. Vanderburgh President

Mark R. Pietrowiak Chair

Matt Burow Vice Chair

Sherri N. Kasdorf Vice Chair

Michael A. Andaloro Treasurer

Carol Kuyers Secretary

Mary Bero

William A. Eisner

Richard G. Galling

Rachel MacKinney

Roosevelt McKinney

Bush Nielsen

Joycelyn Pernell-Henderson

Eric J. Peter

Warren D. Pierson

Lasae Simpson

Members Emeritus

Karl F. Gengler

Philip A. Hardacre

Ervin M. Martens

Robert K. Mitchell

19.11 MIS48957 (2019MRMNLK422) MRM NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER OUTSIDE ALL

Work at the Milwaukee Rescue Mission!Have you ever thought of joining the team at MRM? Check out our employment opportunities at milmission.org/employment

Have you remembered MRM in your estate plan?

True-Life Stories of God’s Provision Through You! November ...

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