News Around the Mission

 

              TRANSITIONAL HOUSING

                         Constance's Story

                        "Looking for Love"

Constance came to live at Seasons transitional housing last month in August. She, like countless others in the Tri-City area, had not been able to find the affordable housing that she and her 11 year old son needed. In fact, when she came to the Mission looking for help Constance had very few material possessions to her name. She had secured a part time job at Subway but simply could not afford to buy the things that most of us take for granted.

However, when talking to Constance it quickly becomes evident that she does have something very special, and that’s her relationship with Jesus Christ. When she talks about Christ her face lights up with joy – a joy that comes from experiencing God’s love in her life.

Constance hasn’t always had that spark though. Her father left her when she was just four years old, leaving her mother to take care of her and her three sisters. Her mother worked two jobs to support them, which didn’t allow her to be home much with her daughters. This left a big void in Constance’s life. She would spend many years to come looking for love and trying to fill the emptiness in her life.

At age 13 she began using drugs, primarily marijuana and crack cocaine. She turned to men, seeking their love and attention. At 15 years old she became pregnant for the first time and then again at 18 years old. At 19 she gave birth to a child that was taken from her by protective services because the baby had tested positive for cocaine at birth.

Over the next few years Constance was in and out of drug treatment but to no avail. Her life continued to spiral downward despite her desire to live differently. By age 24 she began prostituting herself to feed her drug habit. This left her feeling ashamed so to help mask the feelings she would become intoxicated before going out to earn her pay.

In 2008 Constance left Yakima and came to the Tri-Cities for another attempt at drug treatment. She was tired of the way she was living and desperate to make a change. This time treatment would be different. A pastor and his wife were coming regularly from Victory Outreach to the treatment center leading Bible studies. During one of their visits Constance met Jesus Christ and accepted Him into her life. After all these years Constance finally found the Love she was so desperately looking for.

Constance completed treatment and then went to live in a recovery home in Seattle for 6 months. She returned to the Tri-Cities in March of this year. She is a brand new woman; Jesus Christ has radically transformed her life! Constance has been clean and sober for two years, she is growing in the Lord, and is on the worship team in her church.

We at the Tri-City Union Gospel Mission are very glad to have met Constance and are excited to be a part of her new journey. She now has an affordable, furnished two-bedroom apartment and access to the Mission’s food pantry and women’s clothing room. We would like to invite you to pray with us for Constance. We pray that God will provide her with full time employment, and that He would make a way for her to fully restore her relationship with her children.

 

 

Greatest Challenge

Frequently we have been asked about the City of Pasco and the Lewis Street Overpass impact upon the Mission.

The City of Pasco is proceeding with the Lewis Street Overpass project and is pursuing the acquisition of the property necessary for this project. Our two properties involved have already been appraised and environmentally inspected. We will be notified of the appraisal in the next couple of months. THESE TWO PROPERTIES ARE OF GREAT VALUE TO THE MISSION BUT THE APPRAISAL WILL BE MINIMAL BECAUSE PROPERTY VALUES ARE LOW IN THE AREA. The two properties are the entire block between Lewis and Clark on the east side of 2nd Avenue. On these two properties we would have been able to build a warehouse and maintenance building in the future.

The two properties currently enable us to do the following:

• Warehouse for a commercial freezer
• Storage for about 15 pallets of food
• Furniture storage for weekly family day
• Thanksgiving and Christmas food box distribution
• Parking for family day and clients
• Maintenance facility for all our buildings, vehicles, equipment
• Place for a large storage container for personal hygiene, paper towels, etc
• Parking for Mission vehicles/trailers and employee parking
• Ministry convenience since they are across the street from our shelters

 

These two buildings and properties are the supply line for the daily ministry to homeless women, children, and men. Without them we would have to turn people away, reduce meals by 75%, reduce the number of families and men that we clothe, and stop giving away household items. But there is a solution.

We will have to purchase property and build a building that will serve as a warehouse and maintenance facility for our buildings, equipment, vehicles.

The new property cost will far exceed what we are given for our current properties. This will be a financial challenge.

How do we see ourselves going forward?

• First, faith in a personal God who knows about the current situation and who has sustained this ministry through past challenges.
• Second, by knowing that you have stood with us through every challenge to date