Dear Friend of the Mission,
When you take the “less” out of homeless, you end up with the word “home.” The Whosoever Gospel Mission is all about helping homeless men to no longer be homeless – to have a safe place they can call home. When a homeless man comes to the Mission, we become his temporary home by providing transitional housing. When he graduates from the Mission’s New Life Program, he moves into his own home which is considered permanent housing. And during a man’s stay at the Mission, we also tell him about God’s wonderful eternal home. So in every way possible, we try to take the “less” out of homeless.
One of our graduates, Lonsy, was chronically homeless for over 20 years. He came to the Mission in 1989 when I first started serving at the Mission. He didn’t complete our New Life Program at that time, but instead he ended up living in Germantown pretty much as a homeless person for the next 20 years. I would often see him roaming the streets of Germantown near the Mission. By God’s amazing grace, Lonsy came back to the Mission in 2009 – he attended school, graduated and obtained fulltime employment. He then graduated from the Mission’s New Life Program in October 2011 and moved into his own place. I love to drive by Lonsy’s apartment because he has put his name on the front door as a joyful declaration that he is no longer homeless, that this is his home. Another one of our graduates, Nate, grows plants in his apartment. Years ago he worked at a luxury apartment complex in Philadelphia which also provided him with a luxury apartment. But tragically, he lost it all through drugs and ended up being homeless. Today, Nate is working fulltime and living in his own apartment with his own garden of indoor potted plants. A third graduate, Greg, lives with his wife and children in Germantown in his own house. When I drive by his home just about every day, I see a big BBQ grill on his front porch. Greg is a good husband, a good father and a good Christian, actively involved in his church. A couple of years ago, at the bequest of his young daughter, Greg bought from our thrift store a festive, lighted Christmas decoration to put on his front porch railing.
Your kind and generous support helps us to make all of these good things possible! Thanks so much! Please see our current Needs List for other important ways you can help our men.
Working together with you,
Robert A. Emberger, D.Min.
Executive Director