Every day, more than 1,500 people are trying to survive without a home in Colorado Springs. Behind that number are beautiful people God created.
Beautiful people with names.
Beautiful people with families of their own.
Beautiful people with hopes and dreams.
Below, you’ll meet some of these beautiful people and see how your donations, volunteer hours and prayers truly make a difference in their lives.
Men and Women’s Shelter
There are three separate shelters available every night of the year. Entry to all three is based upon good behavior, not sobriety. Each shelter contains kennels, so guests’ pets are out of the cold too.
bed nights
%
increase over last year
men
veterans
women
unique guests
Meet Ronald
When Ronald lost his house in Virginia in a divorce settlement, he had nowhere to live. So he decided it was a good time to make a new start. Ronald appreciates having a temporary place to stay while he looks for part-time work to supplement his fixed income. He returns the favor by helping keep the shelters clean. Ronald looks forward to his future, confident that he will find the right job and a permanent place to call “home” soon. In the meantime, he is grateful for the Mission’s assistance while he gets back on his feet.
Resource Center
This program helps guests navigate a pathway out of homelessness. Guests can take a shower, wash their clothes, talk with a case manager, and meet with one of our 25 partner agencies about finding work, housing and medical care.
guest visits
case management sessions
partner agencies on campus
showers taken
client connections with partner agencies
cycles of laundry washed
haircuts provided
Meet Doreen
Few people would guess that Doreen used to be an auto mechanic. In fact, she is a certified mechanic in brakes and alignment. But since her divorce, in which she lost all her tools, she has not been able to pursue that trade. Having moved from Denver, Doreen has been in Colorado Springs about one year. She expresses the honest sentiment that although she doesn’t like being in a position to need a helping hand, she’s really glad it’s there!
My future at the moment consists of getting my health back in order, and hopefully getting a job after that.
New Life Program
men entered seeking sobriety
graduated
This is a 12-month, residential addiction recovery program for men. Christian counseling, on-the-job training, as well as G.E.D. and sobriety classwork help restore fathers, sons and husbands to their families and back into our community as productive neighbors.
hours of case management
number of times men attended education and spiritual classes
education center graduates
%
graduated with employment
Meet Adrian
For seven years, Adrian took care of his grandmother, who had cancer. When she died a few months ago, a topic that still brings tears to Adrian’s eyes, he felt led by God to make a move. While he gets his bearings, Adrian has found a warm welcome at Springs Rescue Mission. He says the greatest benefit of the Mission is having someone to listen to you and really care about you. His number-one goal is to improve himself and restore a close relationship with God, who he says is making his life better every day.
I’m loving it here. I’m not used to this much positivity in my life.
Food Services
Homeless men and women are served hundreds of meals for breakfast and dinner every day. Men in our addiction recovery program help cook the meals and receive culinary arts training that helps them find work after graduating the program.
meals served
pounds of food rescued
meals served every day
Meet Kirsten
Kirsten, who grew up in Colorado Springs, seemed to have it all—a prestigious job, a lucrative salary and a beautiful daughter. But she also had an abusive husband, who took all that away from her. She returned to Colorado Springs after her divorce to get her life back together. Today, she’s trusting God to guide her on a new path. Before, she didn’t thank God for the successes in her life, and now she is learning how to be thankful. Kirsten enjoys opening up about her life with other guests and volunteers, who spend their time listening to and getting to know her. Kirsten is confident that God is leading her into a bright new future.
The volunteers here work hard. They are getting to know us to understand the real reason why we’re homeless.
Work Engagement
Shelter guests participate in voluntary work-shifts every morning to keep our kitchen, shelters and Resource Center clean and open daily. As a reward, they receive lunch, skip the meal lines at dinner and receive job referrals with community partners.
%
of participants worked 5 or more shifts
two-hour shifts worked by shelter guests
shelter guests had or found employment while participating
guests got housing while participating
unique individuals participated
guest worked 542 shifts
Meet Terrell
Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, Terrell, known for his jokes and sense of humor, says that Springs Rescue Mission is an important resource for people like him dealing with homelessness. He appreciates that he can take a shower, sleep in a warm bed or eat a good meal whenever he needs them. That support frees him up to pursue his goal: find a job and move ahead in life. Over the years, Terrell says he has learned that the most important things in life are, “your health and being as good as you can be.”
It’s important that you guys are here. I mean, who knows where someone would be if it wasn’t for the Rescue Mission?
Housing
Springs Rescue Mission helped 81 people into affordable housing.
of these people were shelter guests
graduated from the New Life Program
%
of these individuals received personal guidance from staff and volunteers
Meet Amanda
While her husband was deployed, Amanda decided to move in with her parents here in Colorado Springs. The relationship soured quickly, leaving Amanda and her “fur baby,” Molly, without a home. After spending two nights on the streets, a friend drove her the Mission. Amanda’s grateful the Mission provides kibble and a kennel for Molly too so they can both stay warm and safe at night. Although she was, “scared and extremely apprehensive,” she met a lot of nice people at the Mission who’ve helped her through this tough time. Today, Amanda is working part-time at a nearby store, and her goal is to get her own apartment.
Personally, what the Mission means to me is that it saved my life.
Supportive Family Services
Many families in Colorado Springs live just above the poverty line – only one unexpected bill away from being homeless. At the Mission, families can “shop” for food, clothing, furniture and other household items in our store. This helps them stretch their paycheck to cover things like rent and utilities.
pounds of clothing distributed
families served
food boxes distributed
visits to the store
new families served
Meet Michael
Leaving an abusive relationship in Texas, Michael only had enough money for bus fare to Colorado Springs. As a member of the Mission’s Work Engagement Program, Michael helps out with odd jobs around the facility. As it turns out, he has quite a knack for barbering. With encouragement and help, he is working to become a barber by attending classes at Paul Mitchell. Michael looks forward to opening his own barber store and having his own home again, where he can pursue his hobby of woodworking.
The Work Engagement Program helped me refocus myself on a new career.
Mission Catering and Citygate Motors
vehicles donated to City Gate Motors
Mission Catering is one of the largest catering businesses in Colorado Springs. In addition to providing extra revenue to support the Mission’s programs, they hire many NLP graduates who’ve completed culinary arts training. City Gate Motors is a car dealership that sells cars below market value to qualified guests to help them get back to work.
vehicles sold to New Life Program graduates
Mission Catering revenue
New Life Program Graduates hired by Mission Catering
catering events
Meet Peggy
Peggy has been in Colorado Springs since 1983, when she was in the Army and stationed at Fort Carson. After two years and four months in the Army, she married, divorced then married again. Tragically, Peggy’s husband passed away, and since their apartment lease had not been renewed, she found herself homeless. Peggy found refuge at the Mission. She says it’s nice to have a place to come when all other options are gone. Volunteers and staff have really helped her through this time, helping her access public benefits and mental health assistance. Without the mission, she adds, she would be out on the streets.
Community Support
individuals and families gave
churches gave
businesses gave
foundations gave
donated
capital campaign donations
clothing, food, and household goods donated
hours volunteered
volunteers
new volunteers
%
of operating expenses used for programming
For full financial statements, please click here.
The reporting period for all figures is July 1, 2017, through June 30, 2018.
Coming Soon
New kitchen and dining hall
- Industrial size kitchen with classroom for culinary arts training
- 170-seat dining hall
- Waiting on additional funding to break ground
Welcome Center
- Additional security, storage for guests’ personal belongings and single point of entry to personally guide guests to the best services for them
- Waiting on additional funding to break ground
Greenway Flats
- 65 permanent supportive housing units for our most vulnerable neighbors
- Opening late Spring 2019
150 additional shelter beds
- Raises the nightly bed total to 450
- Available Winter 2018
