As hundreds of hungry guests join us this holiday season, we hope to help them make a fresh start for the coming New Year. For Theresa, her needs were unique and pressing, and her fresh start involved more than just a meal.

It has always been important to me to help those who couldn’t help themselves. That’s why I’m a licensed clinical social worker and

why I used to volunteer at Water Street Ministries.

In 2006, my world fell apart when I was wrongfully accused by one of my clients. Over the next seven years, I lost everything trying to legally defend myself, and I couldn’t practice my profession.

Last year, my elderly uncle was suffering with severe dementia and bipolar disorder. He wasn’t getting

the help he needed, so I cut back my hours at my grocery store job to become his full-time, live-in caregiver. When I successfully moved him into an assisted living facility where he would be safe, I didn’t have anywhere to live. I didn’t know what to do, so I came to the Mission.

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A Fresh Start Through Meals, Medical Care and More

newsletter

FALL 2013

“I’m learning how to trust people....I’m grateful that there

are people here at the Mission who give that to you.”

–Theresa

job because of it. She told me about Water Street’s clinic called Water Street Health Services, and she helped me get an appointment for the very next day. They cared for me at no charge, giving me medications and a referral to a specialist who diagnosed me with an autoimmune disorder. For the first time I have answers and

relief from pain! Now I can keep my job!

I’m learning how to trust people and to be in relationship with people. I’m grateful that there are people here at the Mission who give that to you. When my life comes together, I want to be aware that material things are not the focus, and I’d like to get back into my counseling profession.•

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Even though they were strangers, they greeted me with open arms at the Mission. I felt they were called by God. I’ve had consistent pain for years in my joints and back. It was getting worse, and I told my Mission counselor that I thought I was finally going to have to leave my

Helping Others

When Luis was 11, he drank out of curiosity. Soon it became a way of life. As he got older, Luis used drugs and alcohol to cover physical pain.

The turning point was reconnecting with his son. The first time the two ever talked on the phone, Luis said “I felt like I was picked up and dropped again. I had never heard his voice.”

Wanting to stay clean and sober but not having anywhere else to go, Luis came to the Water Street Mission. Along

with finding food and shelter, Luis also took advantage of the Christian counseling, life skills and education we offer.

Soon Luis moved out of homelessness. “The Mission helped me change my life,” he said.

We still see Luis five days a week as a volunteer, who helps to distribute food and furniture to families in need. “I needed help, but now I’m helping others.”

Luis loves helping people. If you’d like to help too, please visit wsm.org/volunteer.

Food, Shelter and Education

My name is John. I started doing drugs at a very young age, and I was involved in criminal activity to support my habits. But a conversation with my sister last year changed everything.

She told me she was afraid to answer a call from a phone number she didn’t recognize for fear it was the hospital calling about me. She said she thought I had hit rock bottom and the only next step was death. I dearly loved my sister, so that’s when I knew I needed to change.

I knew I would have to give up my whole lifestyle to change, but I didn’t know where to begin. So I came to the Mission. I’m learning to forgive others and apologize. One of my goals was to get my General Education Diploma (GED), and I got it here at the Mission. I am so thankful, because it will

“I needed help, but now I’m

helping others.”

Please pray for Luis as he enjoys Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners with us again this year.•

open up doors to opportunities like going back to school and getting a job.

I love helping people. When I graduate from the Mission, I want to go to college for social work. I’m interested in youth. I’ve shared my testimony a few times with the youth at Teen Haven. I know that God’s power is my only way out. With all He’s done in my life, I have so much to be thankful for.•

Thanks to you, John is finding food, shelter and education at the Water Street Mission.

This holiday season, will you help hungry families find meals, hope

and more? Visit RescueMissionFoodDrive.org for more information.

October 20 – December 21Most needed items: Canned fruit and vegetables, boxes of stuffing

and mashed potatoes

Drop Off Locations: Any Turkey Hill Minit Market or M&T Bank in LancasterCounty, or Sharp Shopper in Ephrata and Leola

Thanks in advance!

Meals we’ll provide this holiday season

55,100

Lebanon Daily News • Fulton Bank Lebanon County • Highmark Blue Shield

The Franklin H. andRuth L. WellsFoundation

Even More Helpful: For a donation of $2.49, you can help provide a complete holiday meal for someone in need. Simply use the enclosed envelope, or visit wsm.org/fall2013.

Helping the HelperBy Charles “Chasz” Parker

President, Water Street Ministries

Sometimes the helper needs help, like Theresa our cover story. She was called upon to provide care for a loved one. This caregiving though a labor of love took its toll on her. In Theresa’s case, she depleted her own resources, and she ended up sick and homeless.

John did what many young people do, choose the wrong path.

Only the love of his sister could reach him and point him to help.

Water Street helps the helpless and the hurting helper daily. Because of your financial support and care, Theresa and John have transformed lives.

Thank you.•

Loose Change Brings Life ChangeEvery gift counts, no matter the size. Would you consider a penny drive to benefit those in need? Loose change brings life change! Plus, a little healthy competition between genders, classrooms or siblings is always fun! Thanks in advance.

To drop off your donation and take a tour, call Keith at 358-2010.

Alternate Ways to GiveThere’s no better way to give and receive than to make a gift that helps others. This holiday season, take a moment and consider the gifts you would like to make, then make them happen.

Contact Tim Farrell at tfarrell@wsm.org or 358-2025, so we can be of help to you in your giving.

Options may include:

• Stocks• Bonds• Mutual Funds• IRA

Update: Annual Campaign

2nd Quarter Need:

$2,300,000 (October – December 2013)

Because of you, people like John find a fresh start. Thank you for your faithful partnership to help change lives. To make a donation:

•Use the enclosed envelope

•Call Sue at 358-2031

•Visit wsm.org/fall2013 orscan this QR code with your electronic device:

About Water Street MinistriesFor over 100 years, Water Street Ministries has sought to change one life at a time. We provide practical expressions of God’s love in several ways:

• Educating young children throughWonder Club

• Equipping teens in our cities throughTeen Haven

• Providing healthcare for the homelessthrough Water Street Health Services

• Providing rescue and renewal for homelessmen, women and children through theWater Street Mission

We address aspects of poverty beyond just homelessness as we work to create healing communities where lives are transformed.

210 South Prince Street, Lancaster, PA 17603393-7709 • contact@wsm.org • wsm.org