Perry’s Blog

Sadly, a man had to be a bit resourceful and make this ordinary shopping cart into a makeshift wheelchair for his wife; it was lined with a soft, pink blanket so he could transport her somewhat comfortably to our Free Clinic. Thankfully, generous folks occasionally pass along their unused medical items such as wheelchairs and…

My computer faces the window and every so often I gaze across South Pearl Street. Sometimes there are children running by, two people having a discussion, or George watering the flowers. But, this morning I noticed an older gentleman with shoulder length white hair and a cane, across the street. He offered his hand to a…

At the New Faith Program, many of our ladies are in their transition phase where they begin to look for employment. At the present time, the ladies who are work-ready have been hired in both part-time and full-time jobs. One of our graduates has been working full-time through a temp agency and was hoping for,…

“Rags to Riches” is a common phrase but one that has special meaning to the Rescue Mission. It can mean more meals, more medical care, more learning opportunities and more clothing for the neediest of our community and beyond. Since the Mission relies entirely on the generosity of donors, we welcome new and innovative ideas…

It is hard to believe that two years have passed since we first opened the first floor of apartments in the Transitional Living Program (TLP)! Now we have three floors filled and have had the pleasure of walking beside the men in our program and witnessing their abounding growth firsthand. This is the brief story of one such…

It was about 5:45PM this past Thursday.  LeRoy and I met on the sidewalk.  He had just gotten off the bus from work and still had his Albany Med ID around his neck.  We greeted each other and I asked how he liked his job and his studio apartment in the Transitional Living Program. LeRoy transports…

Devin was deep into his alcohol addiction, estranged from his family and didn’t know where else to turn. His sister, a former participant and graduate of the Rescue Mission’s women’s program said, “You need to go to the Mission. It’s the only place that can help you.” Devin took his sister’s advice and joined the…

The other day, a man from Nepal, (I’ll call him “Nai”) came into my office — you could almost literally say he was at the end of his rope.  Nai was a quiet, gentle soul who, very obviously, had bottled everything inside and he was about to explode.  Thankfully, God brought him to the Mission.…

My first stop on the way to work today was with a faithful friend of the Rescue Mission, who is at home in hospice care.  She opened her eyes and confided, “I’m ready to go, I’m tired.”  We talked a little about heaven; no more tears, no more pain, and of Jesus.  Her words became…

Last week, I awaited the arrival of former New Life Programmer, Austin.  Austin graduated from our recovery program last year and came up from New York City so we could visit and take him out to lunch.  I was excited about this for a number of reasons, one being that I was able to stray from…