Union Rescue Mission is located at 545 South San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013 in between E. 6th Street and E. 5th Street in downtown Los Angeles.
Sign in the parking lot.
Pic of the bulletin board by the elevator in the parking lot.
Sign by the elevator in the parking lot.
Logo
These are several of the people I worked with, I think they are all residents.
There was an organization that at one time handed out "tents on wheels" to every homeless person on Skid Row, but it was not followed through due to budget cuts. I saw one of these at Midnight Mission, a woman lived in her tent on wheels in a courtyard for 5 years.
Sign by the cafeteria.
On Sunday, August 1, 2010 from 12:00pm – 5:00pm I volunteered at the Union Rescue Mission, which is just one block away from the Midnight Mission. I didn’t actually plan to go to places near one another - it just worked out that way. Union Rescue is very similar to Midnight Mission, but has a few differences. For starters, it’s about 300 residents, half men, half women, and the recovery programs are not coed. It is a Christian organization, run by donations, as well, but in addition to food donations, some food is also purchased. At this mission I met another male who used to sell crystal meth, however he was also a crystal meth addict. He used and sold marijuana, and mushrooms, as well. He is an African American male about my age, 26. He was extremely kind, and spoke about how he used to be almost like another person. He admitted, “I still have that side to me”. I was so impressed that he could open up about so much that is personal to a complete stranger. He says he used to carry around a knife and nun chucks (sp?) and if anyone tried to fight him he would beat them up without thinking. Now he says he is best friends with his counselor, and dedicated to his program. Basically, he was arrested, lost his car, house, and job, and his mother said she had found a program for him. He says she asked him two questions. 1. If he had to read a bible every day, would he? 2. If he had to attend church, would he? He said his mother had always been religious and he never cared about church or god, but that he agreed to these terms because he wanted to be sober. He is really a great example of the good that comes out of free programs like these, however, I still feel like it’s a place I would never want to live. If I felt my child needed help I am pretty positive I would be trying to get them into a better place, the best I could afford.
He said crystal meth keeps your thoughts racing, and keeps you awake for days. It makes you parched, and extremely aggressive. He said he was awake for a month and a half at one time. His addiction began with snorting, but he said it really escalated once he started smoking it. He would do an eight ball a day, which he said he got for very cheap, just $80. This was the height of his addiction. He says he still wakes up from a dream where he’s smoking it and craving it, and this is after over a year of being clean. He felt it affected his long-term memory, and that marijuana affected his short-term memory. I was pretty impressed with how educated he was about the drugs, not only his street smarts, but that he understood what many college grads are taught about drugs. For example, marijuana kills brain cells. This is a fact which many educated people wish to ignore or debate.
For some reason, on the first day at Midnight Mission, I was able to separate myself from the experience somewhat. But on the second day at Union Rescue, I walked away extremely depressed. I fell asleep as soon as I got home. The reality of how terrible so many lives are in Skid Row seemed inescapable. I truly admire this young man for his journey and hard work to become a healthier and better human being, and this triumph is not to be neglected. But even this miracle is depressing to me. It is so hard for me to want to face the reality that “these types of lives” exist. If I were to be self-reflective instead of judgmental, I would state that perhaps I this is truly terrible from my perspective, but maybe from a perspective of someone who has been homeless, these mission lives are not so terrible? I really do not blame addicts or anyone who gets “stuck” in a place like this, because I know that the only reason I am able to stand on my own two feet is via the help of my family. If I were trying to do it all on my own, I would fall flat on my face in an instant.
For those interested in additional information here is their website:
http://www.urm.org/
