This September, the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission commemorated 20 years of service to Los Angeles.
It has been my honor to serve on the Rescue Mission's advisory board during my years on the City Council, and I was grateful to be honored by the organization last week during their celebration event. Rescuing Angelenos in Need
For two decades, the Rescue Mission has played an important role in the lives of homeless Angelenos in our community. Through its services, the Rescue Mission provides 10,000 nights of shelter to mothers, fathers and their children; serves close to 50,000 meals; and offers more than 10,500 homeless individuals access to showers and clean clothes at eight mobile service locations, annually.
To compound their work, my office has worked hand in hand with the Rescue Mission during good times and bad. We proudly have helped supply buses so that children living at the Rescue Mission's shelter had a place to go during spring break. My staff and I also volunteered at their annual Thanksgiving meal service for homeless individuals, and we've donated toys to the Rescue Mission's kids through my annual Holiday Food and Toy Drive.
When a massive fire burned down the Rescue Mission's North Hollywood homeless shelter in 2014, my City Council colleagues and I quickly partnered with business leaders, stakeholders, like the Los Angeles Dodgers, and hundreds of generous community members with one mission -- to rescue the Rescue Mission. It became a rallying cry in the Valley and far beyond. People across the city donated money and goods, and organized dozens of fundraisers and donation drives, all to get the Rescue Mission back on its feet. Within two years, we helped build a brand new shelter and celebrated the reopening of the Rescue Mission's restored warehouse.
Community Partners
As the city takes steps to reduce homelessness, we will continue working closely with partners in the non-profit community, like the Rescue Mission. The Rescue Mission is a unique and essential community partner in the struggle to end homelessness because of the great work it does to help families in need. I have personally seen families go from the street, into the Rescue Mission's temporary housing and then on to succeed with a job and permanent home. It is a model for the type of transformative help we are working to replicate throughout the City of Los Angeles.
Congratulations to the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission on its 20th anniversary. We greatly appreciate the work they do in our community and throughout our Valley.