New Orleans Mission Sept 2018 Newsletter

RE S C UE , RE C O V ER Y , RE - EN G A GEMEN T

































































SWINTON FOUND GOD



AT THE MISSION!







NEW ORLEANS MISSION SEPTEMBER 2018
New Orleans Mission www.neworleansmission.org 1-504-523-2116

CEO’s CO r n E r


We Will Never

Walk Alone






Dear Friend,

No matter how many relationships God blesses us with, no matter
how close, we all feel alone sometimes. How much worse, then, is it
to be separated, physically and emotionally, from all of the people we
loved... our parents, our families, our friends?

David Bottner Sadly, that’s the case with many of our neighbors who come to the

Chief Executive Officer New Orleans Mission. What ultimately causes people to become
homeless? Even more than lack of money, it’s a lack of relationships.
When people struggle with addiction, often the first casualties are
...neither death nor life, neither their connections to family, society and even God.

angels nor demons, neither Men and women like Swinton and Tracy in this issue of Big Easy,
the present nor the future, nor Big Heart find a sense of family, headed by the loving Father of us
all, at the Mission. As they go through the process of recovery in our
any powers, neither height nor Discipleship Program, they move closer to repairing their broken
depth, nor anything else in all relationships and re-engaging with society. Even more important,

creation, will be able to separate they learn that, no matter who might turn their backs on them, God
never will.
us from the love of God that is

in Christ Jesus our Lord. Thank you for walking alongside our guests. You may never meet
them, but your gifts and prayers tell them somebody cares and that
-- Romans 8:38-39 they’re not alone.


Sincerely,





























2

save date
THE



THE NEW ORLEANS MISSION
FIFTH ANNUAL
Gala BUILDING UPDATE:



FINAL PHASE
december 7, 2018 Two phases are fully funded and the
exterior is complete. Help us get past
hyatt regency hotel the finish line with the third phase. We
still need $900,000 for restoration on
the interior of the building, which will
Please RSVP: Ask for Kirk | 504-523-2116 | [email protected]
include a new day shelter and a place
for vocational programs. To contribute,
You gave please contact our office at 504-523-2116.

Swinton New Orleans Mission



a different way FUNDING OPTIONS
While you might think that cash is the
to look at life! only way in which you can fund an
endowment, memorial, or scholarship
“I found God at the Mission” with The New Orleans Mission, you have
several other options:
ince trying marijuana at 15,
SSwinton graduated from • Appreciated assets. Using an appreciated
one drug to another, including asset that you have owned for more than
methamphetamine and heroin. one year may allow you to eliminate the
The last drug he used was the one capital gains tax on the asset’s appreciation.
he couldn’t control. “With crack • Life insurance. Make the New Orleans
cocaine, it was impossible to keep a job. All I was doing was chasing the high Mission the owner and beneficiary of a
until my money was gone. I drove all my friends away and my family didn’t policy you no longer need.
want anything to do with me.” • Retirement plan assets. These heavily
Swinton left town and ended up in New Orleans. “Big Richard” was the first taxed assets make an ideal gift after your
person he met. “He took me under his wing and showed me the ropes,” Swinton lifetime to the New Orleans Mission, a
recalls. With Big Richard’s help, he found a job and a place to stay. tax-exempt organization.
“We were still getting high, but Big Richard told me we needed to stop • Gifts that provide income. By
doing this one day. I didn’t think he was serious.” One day, Big Richard establishing a life income gift, such as
disappeared. charitable remainder trust, you can
Swinton’s addiction cost him his job and his apartment. “I went back to receive income for the rest of your life
the streets, which I didn’t want to ever do again. I had heard about the New and the New Orleans Mission will receive
Orleans Mission. I came by to stay the night and I saw Big Richard sitting the remaining assets after your lifetime.
on the stoop. I remember him saying, ‘So you finally made it!’”
When he heard about our Men’s Discipleship Program, Swinton admitted • Bequests. Remembering the
that he needed help. “I had tried everything else, so why not this? Looking back New Orleans Mission in your Will is
on it now, it was the best decision I ever made in my life,” he tells us. an easy, flexible way to provide support
“I found God at the Mission,” he continues. “I look at life differently now. to our organization.
I’m joyful. I have peace. As much as God has given me, I’d like to give to others For information on these, or any of our
and show them that there is another way of life than what they’re doing.” many services, contact the New Orleans
Today Swinton works in ministry at the Mission. He hopes to go into the Mission at 504.523.2116 and make a
U.S. Army someday and serve as a chaplain. “I’m just following what God tells confidential appointment to speak with
me to do,” Swinton says. “The sky is the limit!” one of our experts.
3

Though my father

and mother forsake

me, the LORD will


receive me.

-- Psalm 27:10






















Tracy finds a parent who will

Time& never abandon her!
Give your

“I am a daughter of the most high God.”
Treasure “ Ther two sons living on their own, Tracy had too much time on her
he hardest thing about being a parent is when your kids grow up.” With

hands... time to think about her own painful childhood. “I was abandoned by
More Ways to Give my mother and that’s why I clung so much to my own children. I didn’t want

Do you have a clean driving record them to feel what I felt as a child.”
and time to spare? Be a volunteer Being an empty nester left Tracy feeling abandoned again. “I lost hope.
Driver for the Mission! CDL I didn’t want to live anymore. I was using drugs to make myself feel some
endorsement and standard license kind of normal.” When Tracy ended up in jail for driving under the influence,
driving opportunities are available. friends helped her connect with the New Orleans Mission to recover from her
addiction.
We have many other ways to share “The Mission showed me my identity in Christ,” Tracy says, “that I’m
the love of Christ at the Mission. worthy and I’m loved. They showed me that I am a daughter of the most high
You can help prepare and serve God.”
food, or help with our community Today, Tracy says, “Hope looks like helping others and being able to make a
outreach. We also have an ongoing difference. The Lord has got me and that’s a wonderful feeling.”
need for G.E.D. Instructors, Data
Entry and Professional Phone Help.
facebook.com/NewOrleansMission
If interested contact
Deonne Beard at 504-523-2116 or
[email protected] @NOLAMission


NewOrleansMission3




New Orleans Mission www.neworleansmission.org 1-504-523-2116