bridges, and sleeping in their vehicles. We were not ready for what happened next! Soon we had a three-month waiting list of volunteers, churches, corporations, and even city officials who wanted to go out. We couldn’t find open nights because the people who came last month wanted to go again and again. So we launched a second van and increased our routes to the edges of our communities. It, too, filled up. So we launched another and another. Currently, we are sending out five vans a night, every night of the week, each with six to eight individuals—from donors to pastors, from women’s Bible study groups to schools and public officials. Recently, while the mayor of Seattle was out with us on one of the vans, he watched as our teams worked with one woman who had diabetes and cancer and a personality bigger than life. He watched as the team finally talked her into coming in off the streets. He has continued to follow up with us to track her progress. But more importantly, while he was out that night we had the opportunity to talk about the real issues that are affecting his city. In one particular homeless encampment—where more than 100 individuals live with mud, filth, and rats—heroin addiction is the overwhelming pre- senting issue. It was there that we were able to mention to the mayor that this wasn’t a homeless problem; this was an addiction problem. Two weeks later in a press conference, for the first time, we heard the mayor identify substance abuse as one of the key issues affecting homelessness in Seattle. This was the first time the mayor started to talk about the nails. The key is to identify what nails are affecting your city. Identify one nail. The same nail won’t be found in all communities, so each community will need to respond differently. The awesome thing about rescue missions is that they are passionate about the work they do. They are innovative. They are scrappy. They have to be. The Real Causes O ur society is a bit puzzled by what is happening with homelessness. They’re not sure why the problem keeps grow- ing. The National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) lists the top five reasons for homelessness as foreclosures, poverty, lack of work opportuni- ties, a decline in public assistance, and a lack of affordable housing. All of these are contributing factors. But let’s work backward. If someone can’t afford housing because they’re poor, why are they in poverty? They can’t get a job or keep a job. If someone can’t get a job or keep a job, why not? When we work with people to help them get back on their feet and into a thriving life where they are reengaged with their family and society, we quickly identify the issues that are holding them back. Typically, it’s substance abuse, crimi- nal justice issues, and/or mental health issues. The NCH doesn’t list any of those issues as the WWW.AGRM.ORG MAY/JUNE 2017 11 The awesome thing about rescue missions is that they are passionate about the work they do. They are innovative. They are scrappy. They have to be. Continued on page 16 Ī