Young Men on the Streets

"As a result of your ministry, they will give glory to God. For your generosity to them and to all believers will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ." - 2 Corinthians 9:13

"I came in here at 22 years old, and I thought my life was over" – Kevin.

A successful high-school ball player, Kevin started using drugs "recreationally," but the recreation soon disappeared. He gave up baseball, dropped out of high school and, at 22, high on Oxycontin and wanting more, Kevin burglarized the home of a former employer. After he was caught, convicted and released on supervision, Kevin realized, "There was no calling anyone for help. My bridges were burned." Two days later, he came to the Mission.

Over the past 25 years, the average age of men staying at the Union Gospel Mission Men's Shelter has fallen dramatically. The common stereotype of a 55-year-old alcoholic transient no longer reflects our typical guest. In fact, the largest segment of Spokane's homeless population, according to the 2010 One-Day Count, falls in the 18-39 age range.

"We're seeing a lot of young people who come from three or four generations of divorced families," explained Men's Mission Director Randy Altmeyer, "young men who grew up without fathers or solid mentors. They haven't had structure or accountability or even stable, loving relationships. We're finding that we have to build trust before we can work on issues . . . but that relational piece is probably what we do best."

Kevin agreed. When he joined the Mission's recovery program, he thought it would focus on his addiction, but he was surprised. "It's more your spiritual walk with the Lord and relationships. Relationship. Relationship. Relationship – getting involved with groups of people that are going to be supportive of you.

"If you don't have relationship, it leads to isolation, and it leads to loneliness, and when you become lonely, that's when I started turning to what would comfort me, and that was drugs. I'm also learning other ways to cope when I do get lonely. There's other ways to deal with it than doing drugs."

Men between the ages of 18 and 25 who come to the Mission become part of Boot Camp – a program emphasizing physical activity and responsibility while also giving them an opportunity to hang out with other guys their own age. They work within the shelter 20 to 25 hours a week, attend Bible study, chapel and community meetings, and meet with a case manager – both to shape goals and to evaluate their progress toward meeting those goals.

"Throughout their lives these guys have been allowed to do what they want whenever they want," Randy explained. "Here, they're in a structured program. They find out what work is like. They find out what showing up on time is like. They find out what accountability is like. And eventually, they find out we're not all about watching them fail. We want to see them succeed."

Most importantly, Kevin found out what grace and acceptance are like. He described the Mission as a kind of family.

"This is perfect for me. I'm not even worried about the outside world right now. It'll be there. I don't need to hurry up and get out there because it will be a disaster if I'm not fixed. The biggest thing I keep telling myself is 16 months is nothing to get the rest of my life back. Sixteen months on the scale of a lifetime is a sliver."