Today is graduation day for Jose, Bob, and Tim. These men could not be more different, but one thing they have in common is their effort at creating better lives for themselves through our Transformation Program.
Jose is a young man who has made some poor choices. He spent two weeks in our Gateway shelter before joining our program. His thoughts mirror the thoughts of many of our successful guests:
The program opened my eyes to the bad stuff I have been doing. I have met a lot of terrible people and here I met real people that care. There’s tough love in this place, but I know the counselors aren’t being mean. They are trying to help me. They showed me that I have obligations that are more important than my desires.
Tim has spent most of his life driving trucks. He fell on hard times and found his way to our Mission. We’re helping him cope with his vices. He is a licensed CDL driver, and after Clean Team he wants to get back into truck driving. We’ll be with him every step of the way and hope we can place him in a job when he is ready.
Bob came to us after some time in prison. Like so many who have been incarcerated he had no place to go. The Allentown Rescue Mission doesn’t turn away any man seeking our help. And if that man is willing to put forth some effort we will take him into our Transformation program and do the best we can to get him onto his feet and out into the world.
All three of these men have skills: Jose has been a forklift operator, Tim drove a truck, and Bob has a background in carpentry. They will be great additions to our Clean Team, and we are confident that we can help them find employment and independence when they are ready. Congratulations men!
