Shreveport Bossier Rescue Mission

Since 1955, the Mission has been on the frontlines as a beacon of hope ready to serve the most hurting and vulnerable in our community. The reality is that none of our guests dreamed when they were growing up that one day that would have to live at the Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission but through trauma, addiction, and other life circumstances they found themselves hurting, broken, and in need of our help.

No one ends up at the Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission by accident. Through a series of trauma and broken relationships, our guest have found themselves living in homelessness and poverty. The guests we serve come from all walks of life. Many include women escaping domestic violence, veterans experiencing PTSD, men and women struggling with addiction, women escaping the sex industry, individuals experiencing unemployment, those who have suffered severe trauma, seniors who have disabilities, children, and more recently, those affected by current inflation and job loss. 

While all of our guests may have different circumstances that led them to the Mission, they all have one thing in common. They all have hopes and dreams for their future (Jeremiah 29:11), and with the help of our Life Recovery Program, our guests are able to rediscover and achieve those hopes and dreams. 

The Mission has 11 different program from a 7-day emergency shelter for homeless men, women, and children in need all the way to a 1-year long term recovery program. Each program in our Life Recovery Program not only meets a person's basic needs but also provides them with the tools needed for a complete life transformation. 

Our Life Recovery Program provides Christ-centered small/large group classes, essential life-skills education, comprehensive financial literacy, one-on-one weekly case management, Christian counseling, vocational training, medical and dental care, and more. Over the course of a year, our Mission Family provided 63,000 meals, 33,000 nights of shelter, 6,800 medical and dental services, 8,200 hours of classes and essential life skills education, 33,000 hours of Vocational Training and more than 4,200 hours of one-on-one case management to 730 homeless men, women, and children.

At the end of our program, our goal is for all our guests to find God, find purpose, find life, and go out and change the world. A person is able to accomplish this when they have repaired a series of broken relationships in their life. Those relationships are a relationship with God, relationship with self, relationship with others, and relationship with creation. Mark Twain is quoted as saying, "the two greatest days of your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why." God created all of our guests with a purpose and our Life Recovery Program allows our guests to find their purpose and gives them to tools to live it out. 

Testimonials

Looking back, tragedy and trauma marked Angela’s life. At the age of four, Angela lost her father. As she was heading into her pre-teen years, she lost her 3 siblings all within one year of each other. The devastating loss of her family and with the realization that she was the only sibling alive, Angela started coping with her pain with drugs.

For the next 20 years, Angela struggled with her addiction. She tried balancing motherhood and work while using but the sudden death of her husband in 2018 brought everything crashing down. Her dependence on drugs only increased and led to a life of homelessness for the next two and half years.

After years of homelessness and pain, Angela finally had enough. She came to the Mission looking for healing and freedom. When Angela finally walked through the doors of the Mission, “I wasn’t sure I wanted to be here, but I knew that I felt safe.” 

Today, Angela is now thriving and growing in our New BeginningsProgram. “I’m safe here and walking with Jesus now and following Him picking up my cross daily.” Today Angela knows she has a Jeremiah 29:11 and is chasing after it and after God. “I am thankful for the Mission because I am no longer homeless. This wouldn’t happen without our community.”

Check out more stories like Angela's at https://www.sbrescuemission.com/blog/