4 min read
A Light in the Valley
More than 20 years ago, the idea of a shelter in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley was born, and in the past few years has begun to take shape. Soon,...
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3 min read
Walking Where the Pain Is
In Clarkston, WA, Pastor Jeff Pernsteiner leads Confluence Community Church with a passion rooted in both deep faith and deep compassion. “We started...
4 min read
A Conduit of God's Excellence: Letting ministry flow from the heart
Jeremy Stevens, LC Valley Shelter Director: April 19, 2023
UGM is not just shaped by knowledge, experience, and skill, but by the true condition of our hearts - collectively. Excellence in ministry flows from...
5 min read
Is Housing the Answer to Homelessness?
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: July 20, 2022
Has America misdiagnosed the problem of homelessness? In her article “Does Poverty Cause Homelessness?” Marchauna Rodgers argues that we have. She...
3 min read
The Polarizing Topic of Homelessness [and the hot spot in the middle]
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: May 27, 2022
In 2006, toward the beginning of the Spokane region’s focused efforts on addressing homelessness, 1,592 individuals were counted in the annual...
5 min read
Radical Hospitality: Food as Grace
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: November 4, 2021
You may have heard us say we’re not just a soup kitchen, and while that is certainly true, it is also true that so much of what we do begins with a...
4 min read
Business Owners vs. the Unhoused: A False Dichotomy
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: October 7, 2021
A false narrative is being promoted that pits two groups against each other on the subject of homelessness in Spokane.
6 min read
Ridiculed Schoolgirl to Heroin Addict: Johanna’s Story
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager: September 8, 2021
“I was brought up in a family of musicians and my dad was the smartest man I’ve ever known, a philosopher.” Johanna is well spoken, educated and...
3 min read
A Safe, Healing Community
Union Gospel Mission: September 8, 2021
UGM is more than a shelter. Deep at the root of everything we do—from creating a warm welcome to helping people heal, thrive and get back to...
4 min read
The Government Agrees: "Housing First" isn't Working
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: February 4, 2021
In the fall of 2020, while the news media was focused on the pandemic and the presidential election, a significant report was quietly released by the...
3 min read
Winning Essay: What I Wish People Knew About Homelessness
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager: December 10, 2020
"Being homeless doesn't make you less of a person." UGM Men's Shelter resident
3 min read
The Gift of Talk Therapy for Homeless Men
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager: September 30, 2020
Dr. Ed Schultze received his doctorate in psychology from Fuller Seminary and has been working in the field for about 50 years. He has worked...
5 min read
What Causes Homelessness? (It Isn't Always Addiction)
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager: September 24, 2020
We talk a lot about the cycle of homelessness and addiction here at UGM. We know that substance abuse is a contributing factor for a large percentage...
5 min read
In Their Words: Two Men Share Their Stories of Recovery
Genevieve Gromlich, former Content and Communications Manager: September 2, 2020
Tyler and Mike recently spoke at UGM's phase promotion event, where they were honored for completing phase 4. "Just a few years ago I was lost and...
4 min read
What I learned from my homeless guests
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: March 11, 2020
Last fall, just before Thanksgiving, a couple acquaintances of mine were on the verge of homelessness. It was crazy timing. They didn’t know each...
5 min read
We Need Each Other: The Cure for Loneliness
Union Gospel Mission: November 12, 2019
“Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.” – Psalm 25:16 For decades, Debra was a self-described “functioning drunk,”...
4 min read
Loneliness and Isolation
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: November 7, 2019
“Humans connect to other humans at so basic a level that when we disconnect, our souls shatter into a thousand little pieces.” – Peter Leithart When...
4 min read
Toward Better Relief and Development
Union Gospel Mission: October 22, 2019
Last week, we posted Pastor John Repsold’s explanation of the differences between relief and development when it comes to addressing homelessness....
4 min read
Relief vs. Development: Diagnosing Causes
Union Gospel Mission: October 16, 2019
Editor’s Note: Pastor John Repsold, whose downtown Spokane church Mosaic Fellowship includes ministry to people experiencing homelessness, presented...
2 min read
We Believe...
Union Gospel Mission: October 2, 2019
You may have seen a television commercial for UGM this fall that starts out, “We believe…” In these somewhat acrimonious times, amid heated debate...
4 min read
Love Your Homeless Neighbor
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: September 19, 2019
“If we are to love our neighbors, before doing anything else we must see our neighbors. With our imagination as well as our eyes, that is to say like...
3 min read
We're Celebrating Real People Making Real Change.
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: September 4, 2019
Why a fall campaign? This blog post is meant to give you a glimpse behind the fundraising curtain at UGM. As a faith-based, non-profit organization...
5 min read
Is Housing the Answer to Homelessness?
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: July 10, 2019
In her article “Does Poverty Cause Homelessness?” Marchauna Rodgers argued that the United States has misdiagnosed the problem of homelessness,...
2 min read
Homelessness: Defining the Problem
Phil Altmeyer, Executive Director: June 11, 2019
In his book “When Helping Hurts,” Dr. Brian Fikkert explains the far-reaching consequences of defining poverty incorrectly. He likens it to a doctor...
6 min read
Cleaning up Homeless Encampments
Barbara Comito, former marketing director: June 5, 2019
The Spokane Police Department is piloting a new approach to dealing with homeless encampments. The idea is to clean up the camps while also offering...