M E A L S

A M O N T H

CROSSROADS NEWSLETTER | FEBRUARY 2018

A CHANGED LIFE

PAGE 2

WELCOMING DR. VARA

PAGE 3

7TH ANNUAL LEGACY OF VISION GALA

PAGE 3

Encouraging hearts... celebrating recovery

Christine: Before & After Life on the Streets • PAGE 2

Restoration at The Anne Douglas Center

STAY CONNECTED

LOS ANGELES MISSION303 East 5th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013

(213) 629-1227 Ext. 400

LOS ANGELES MISSION - DONATION DROP OFF316 Winston Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013 www.LosAngelesMission.org

Keep track of the latest Mission news,make safe online donations, and more.

Planned Giving What Your Loved Ones Secretly Want From You

PLEASE CONSIDER INCLUDING LOS ANGELES MISSION IN YOUR WILL

I would like information on how to create or update my Estate Plan. I have already included Los Angeles Mission in my Will, Trust, or Estate Plan.

Name Daytime Phone Evening Phone Email

Reply with the enclosed envelope or contact Randy Hess at (213) 629-1227 ext. 357 or rhess@lamission.net. Go to www.christianwill.org/lamission

to bless your family with a God-honoring Will.

N182

Have you seen the TLC reality show, “Long Lost Family”? Each episode aims to reunite families—adoptive children seeking their birth parents, people looking for siblings they didn’t know existed, the list goes on.

While each story is unique, two strong themes consistently emerge:1. Every person has been carrying something heavy for

years—guilt, rejection, pain, or loss of identity—and longing for restoration.

2. Everyone just wants to belong.The show resonates deeply because it speaks to something we’ve all experienced—a need

for connection; to experience love and forgiveness.When someone decides to create a Will or Estate Plan, they often think first about the

“stuff” they’ll leave behind. While you may feel a deep sentimental attachment to your china dishes or heirloom furniture, a recent trend suggests younger loved ones may not feel the same. (This was somewhat crudely identified in a recent Forbes article entitled “Sorry, Nobody Wants Your Parents’ Stuff”.) Millennials and GenXers have a tendency toward minimalism, are more mobile, and don’t mind buying furniture that’s cheaply made if it helps them achieve a certain aesthetic. What they really want from you is a legacy of love. Here are three simple ways to leave one:3. Button things up. There can be unbelievable pressure and emotion locked up in executing

someone’s end-of-life wishes—especially when financial headaches or loads of personal belongings have to be taken care of. Go the extra mile by eliminating these concerns.

4. Put your love into words. Don’t miss an opportunity to share your faith or feelings with the next generation. Communicating a heritage is a gift beyond value. Write it, say it, share it.

5. Create a Will that aligns with your heart. Carving out a plan to bless your loved ones and the ministries that have impacted your life, like Los Angeles Mission, is a powerful legacy to leave behind.Let your Will be a gift of meaning and belonging. “We won’t hide them from our

children. We will tell them to those who live after us. We will tell them what the Lord has done that is worthy of praise. We will talk about his power and the wonderful things he has done.” Psalm 78:4 NIRV

Come celebrate our Anne Douglas Center graduates with a special honors ceremony.

ADC Honor’s Evening2/03Come celebrate our Urban Training Institute graduates with us!

FreshStart Graduation2/09Volunteer OrientationInterested in volunteering at Los Angeles Mission? Please attend an orientation session. To register go to: LosAngelesMission.org/act

2/033/03

UPCOMING EVENTS | SAVE THE DATES!

Your Opportunity To Give A Gift

That Keeps Giving

Will you consider giving a gift today that keeps giving month after month, year after year? When you engage in this act of caring, you become an esteemed member of our Meals-a-Month program. This outreach is a hassle-free opportunity for you to support the proven, successful work of Los Angeles Mission each month.

When you participate in the Mission’s Meals-a-Month program, you help provide hearty meals, safe secure shelter, one-on-one care, life-transforming programs, and other vital services for all who come to us for assistance. When you send your first gift in February, you join the thousands other friends of the Mission reach even more people in need in our community month after month.

Please sign up today by visiting losangelesmission.org/give.

If you prefer, you may also reach out to Nuria Mora at 213.629.1227 ext.334.

Thank you for joining us as a partner in our Meals-a-Month program.

We look forward to having you on board.

NEWS FROM LOS ANGELES MISSION • FEBRUARY 2018

Christine visiting the unwelcoming streets on which she used to live.

Jacqueline Vara, Ph.D.

John after graduating from Los Angeles Mission.

She was addicted, broken, hurt and in a downward spiral

seeking to end her life. Until she didn’t even succeed at that

because God had bigger plans.

CROSSROADS NEWSLETTER | FEBRUARY 2018CROSSROADS NEWSLETTER | FEBRUARY 2018

From the Heart of Herb Smith

Thank you for your ongoing support of Los Angeles Mission. Because you stand with us month after month we’re able to help provide the opportunity for hope and healing to all who come to us in despair. Your kindness helps heal people from their deepest wounds and creates positive expectations for their future. For many, it’s a spiritual experience as well.

We see this healing in all areas of the Mission…and among the most dramatic is what happens every day at the Anne Douglas Center. A first sign of this healing is in a woman’s physical appearance: there are more smiles, there is more eye contact, and both are coupled with a renewed sense of self-worth. Over time, there’s an acceptance of the past and a growing faith that better days lie ahead. All of this is possible because of your prayers and generous financial support.

At Los Angeles Mission, we believe in everyone’s potential, hidden though it may be. We remind our guests that small steps lead to big dreams. Thank you for helping so many of these dreams come true.

In partnership with you,

Herb Smith President/CEO

Coming to the Anne Douglas Center at Los Angeles Mission was never on my bucket list. But I was in big trouble—addicted to meth and heroin. I had been using heroin since age 18 and was on prescription drugs from ages 18 to 24. For too many days I was homeless, living in a truck in the middle of the Nevada desert. I once tried to commit suicide by jumping off a cliff, but I only fractured my pelvis. For months I found myself in and out of psych hospitals. One day my mom said I needed to go to the Los Angeles Mission for help.

The day I came to the Mission was the moment that turned my life around, because that was the day I walked into the embrace of caring people at the Anne Douglas Center. I got clean. I started to

believe in myself. I began to look, act, and feel different. Today, I’m not the person you would’ve met just a few months ago. I’m a student—and I will graduate from the Mission’s program in June. I memorize scriptures, I work in the kitchen, I help with cleanup, and I help meet the physical and spiritual needs of 20 girls in the Anne Douglas Center.

I love being a servant. In the past I lived in so much darkness, figuring there was no way out. Today I have found that way out… and it is through a relationship with a loving, accepting God. Thank you for the food, the safe shelter and the nice clothing. But most important, thank you for giving me hope.

Your grateful friend, Christine

FEATURE STORY:

Christine: Before and After Life on the Streets

It’s an honor to serve as the new Vice President of Women and Family Programs. My coming to the Anne Douglas Center at Los Angeles Mission is a response to my being called to serve those in most need in our community.

The main reason we exist, and key definition to the success of ADC, is to help a woman develop a viable, personal relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This lifelong success often starts with a hot, nourishing meal. Hope begins with a smile, a hug and a reminder that someone who feels unloved is deeply loved by God and by those of us who serve.

Because of you, your donations and contributions continue to help provide support services for women and families that are so urgently needed. We value you, your time, and we welcome you as an active, engaged member of our community. Please visit our website at www.annedouglascenter.org. God bless you, and many thanks for your generous support.

Our 7th Annual Legacy of Vision Gala was a smashing success. Through your generosity, the Legacy of help, hope and opportunity continues for the women of Los Angeles Mission’s Anne Douglas Center. Because of your support, the Gala raised $415,000—bringing the total investment in women’s lives to more than 16 million dollars since our first Gala.

The Anne Douglas Center is transforming the lives of women on Skid Row. This year we had the privilege of honoring Catherine Zeta Jones, daughter-in-law to Anne Douglas, for her years of philanthropy centered on women, children, and social concerns much like the work of the ADC. Because Catherine’s family all had Oscars, we thought it would be fun to create a similar award for her, and all others who will receive the award in the future. Thank you, Catherine, for your compassion and outreach toward those in need.

The Anne Douglas Center A Vision for Women in Need… a Solution that Changes Lives

John: I Thought I Just Needed A Shower

7th Annual Legacy Of Vision Gala Honoring The Philanthropy of Catherine Zeta Jones

Meals & CareHow Your Gifts Help

Los Angeles Mission exists to provide help, hope, and opportunity to men, women,

and children in need.

Meals Served

171,695374,272

Nights of Shelter

53,676113,964

Clothing Distributed [Pieces]

45,954109,859

Clean Showers

58,933125,090

Services

2017 Year-thru-Nov.Fiscal Year-thru-Nov.

When I first came to the Mission, I didn’t think I needed what it had to offer. I just needed a shower. Then, one day I realized I desperately needed the Mission’s program to help heal my shattered life. I was tired of getting up every day thinking of a way to hustle some money for alcohol and other drugs. Hope was not a word in my vocabulary.

But today all that’s changed. I’ve graduated from the Mission’s program. I’m clean and sober. I’ve been healed physically and spiritually. Thank you for helping to create this positive environment for physical and spiritual healing.

You help feed us, clothe us, and give us a safe place to live. It’s my prayer the Mission will always be at the

top of your giving list. And when you come and talk to us it means so much. Please keep doing that, because you and your kindness mean so much to me. Thank you.