What's it like to live with nothing but cardboard between you and the street?

A piece of cast-off cardboard can be a homeless person's best friend - or last resort. If you're lucky enough to get a whole box, it can be a home. Or the only suitcase you have for your meager belongings.

Here at the Allentown Rescue Mission, with your help, we replace cardboard with warm beds, serviceable shoes, clothing and a place to shelter from cold winter nights. We also provide hot meals and the means to end homelessness - one person at a time.

Do these simple services make a difference? Absolutely! Just ask Frank, who was featured in our holiday issue of TIDINGS!

"When I started drinking a lot I started losing jobs. I'd come to the Mission and stay for a while and I'd be OK for a year or so, then I'd start the same process all over again," said Frank. "But then I got tired of being homeless, so I went into the Life Recovery Program."

Frank came to our Gateway Center emergency shelter when he needed a meal or a place to stay. And it was there that he was not only fed and given a bed for the night, but encouraged to join our long-term recovery program to resolve the problems that were causing his homelessness and eventually end them.

From homeless to hopeful - that's the difference your support can make.

You can provide all this and more with your secure online gift to Operation Safe Shelter.