Well, it is September already and we certainly have had quite the year adjusting to all that COVID has brought about! We would normally have invited everyone to the annual Donor Appreciation Banquet to give you an update on all of the wonderful things God has done through the Mission. Since we cannot celebrate with a banquet, how about some celebrating through some old-fashioned means (written words)? The Mission has continued to meet the needs of our community’s homeless men with the Life Recovery Program. We provided 5,617 nights of shelter to homeless men right here in the Victor Valley. Nine men graduated the program, six men were baptized in a local evangelical Christian church, all nine reunited with family, and seven are now gainfully employed.

We served 43,500 meals to those in need in our community, including more than 3,500 emergency food boxes feeding more than 13,000 seniors, single parents, and other individuals. We provided over 6,500 showers through our Showers of Blessings trailer, and with each shower, new socks and undergarments were provided. In addition to our regular weekly outreaches, the Mission hosted several special outreach events with a total of over 51,000 individuals from the community attending. We are so grateful for the 900 volunteers who came out to help, totaling 22,500 hours of service!

This has definitely been a unique year in light of the COVID shutdowns and such we have been adhering to the state-recommended restrictions. We’ve made a lot of changes in order to continue to serve our community: We serve our food pantry sites drive through contactless deliveries, and bagged, to-go meals are being distributed from the Mission on weekdays, along with coffee and pastries in the morning, and lunch in the afternoon. We have heard from our guests that meal opportunities have been limited since the onset of COVID, so The guests are so grateful for the meals and have told us that it is even more difficult for them since COVID, so thank you for supporting the Mission, so we can continue to serve our neighbors in need.

I am certainly in awe of God, and no matter what the circumstance we may find ourselves in we can only give Him praise for His provision. The mission has seen such great support through the shutdown—we have had each and every need met on-time! We have faith that God will bring to the Mission whatever is needed to accomplish His will in the Victor Valley. Please join us in prayer as we look to God for wisdom and guidance to bring the Rescue Mission Alliance Victor Valley to places we could not go on our own!

If you would like to help by volunteering or donating, you can call the Mission at 760-955-5958. We have many opportunities available for you to serve those in need.

Bill Edwards
Director