Tag Archives: Christian rehabilitation

Happy Birthday, Troy!

Posted on by
Reply

The beginning of each month we celebrate the birthdays of guys who are a part of our Foundations Life Recovery residential program. This month we’re celebrating Troy who has a birthday on July 9th. Troy got his very own birthday cake thanks to our friend, Stormy, who bakes a cake each month for our birthday fellas.

Troy, originally from Baltimore, is one of our new residents. He joined the program in March ’21 and is working towards his graduation in the spring of 2022. Troy came seeking help dealing with drug abuse and homelessness.

Any time we can celebrate a birthday with our residents is very special to us. But for Troy this was a special moment as well. With tears in his eyes Troy told us that this was the first time in many years that anyone had sang ‘happy birthday’ to him.

And this is why we’re here. To bring hope – even if it’s in the form of a silly birthday song – to anyone who walks into our doors seeking help and refuge. We’re so thankful for Troy and being a part of a celebration of another year of life for this incredible man.

Please pray for Troy and the other men in our Foundations Life Recovery program. It’s not easy seeking help and even more difficult following through but God is great and has wonderful things planned for these men so please keep all of them in your prayers. God is doing amazing things in the lives of these men so continue to pray for them and encourage them to keep up the good fight.

Thank you to each of you who donate and volunteer. You are a part of Troy’s celebration. Because of generous and kind people like you Troy is here celebrating another birthday and optimistic about so many more birthdays in the future. Thank you for partnering with us to help wonderful people like Troy!

If you’d like to learn more about our Foundations Life Recovery program please click here: Foundations | hagerstownhopecenter

Another Great Party-in-the-Park!

Posted on by
Reply

On Saturday, October 22nd we hosted our second annual fall Party-in-the-Park at Wheaton Park in Hagerstown.

This Halloween themed event is designed to be an outreach event by going into our surrounding neighborhoods and meeting the many wonderful families and residents of these areas.

Originally meant to be an actual park party, we eventually moved our party into the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center due to high winds. We are very thankful to the staff of the  Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center for offering the building for use for our event. We appreciate being a part of such a kind and giving community!

Even though our event was indoors, that didn’t stop anyone, including our 30 volunteers, from having fun! From games, to face painting, entertainment, food and more our volunteers worked hard to make this event a success.

We enjoy being able to go out into our community to build stronger relations with our neighbors. This may only be our second time hosting this party but it most certainly won’t be our last. We want to build strong bonds with our neighbors so that we can work together to make Hagerstown a better place.

This event was sponsored by our Ladies’ Auxiliary. All the expenses of this event were underwritten by the Auxiliary and we are so thankful for their commitment to this ministry and our community. As you can see our Ladies’ Auxiliary are a very important and beneficial part of The Hope Center. This event and many other events are sponsored by this wonderful group of women. If you are interested in being a part of our Ladies’ Auxiliary then call 301.739.1165 or email us at hagerstownrescue@verizon.net. We are always looking for more women to get involved and help us keep events like the Party-in-the-Park going year after year.

As successful as this party was, we know that we couldn’t have done it without the help from all of our great volunteers! We firmly believe that we have the best volunteers in the tri-state. Thank you to each of the volunteers who gave hours of their Saturday to help us create so much magic and fun for our guests! We welcome you back to help us with any other event or activity that we’re hosting. And we need to give a special shout out to Gene Ridenour, president of our Board of Directors, and Jeff Reed. Both of these men have been very vital to all of our party events. Gene entertains kids and adults alike with his balloon modeling and Jeff makes everyone happy by being the best grillmaster in Hagerstown! Thank you both for giving of your time to reach our community.

If you’re interested in volunteering at The Hope Center then please go to http://www.volunteerhagerstown.com and learn more about the various ways you can be involved. You can also contact us by calling 301.739.1165 or email us at hagerstownrescue@verizon.net.

 

 

And a Happy Thanksgiving To All!

Posted on by
Reply

One of the longest running traditions at The Hope Center is our annual Great Hagerstown Thanksgiving Feast.

Since the beginning, we’ve been making sure that anyone and everyone has a place to go to celebrate Thanksgiving.

And this year, during our 60th Anniversary Year of Celebration, we made sure our guests were going to have a great day of food, fellowship and fun!

Our Great Hagerstown Thanksgiving Feast always draws a crowd and this year was no different. Approximately 300 guests joined us to give thanks to God and eat delicious food.

Along with various planned kids activities, our guests were able to see our 60th Anniversary DVD with some of the history of our ministry. And to help our celebration, we were able to give away some pretty sweet gifts from Walt Disney World!

Thanksgiving is always a fun day for us at The Hope Center because we just love getting the opportunity to get to know our guests and bring a smile to their faces on Thanksgiving.

But all the magic that is given that day is due to our friendly and happy staff and volunteers who help to make sure that our guests have the best Thanksgiving ever.

We are so thankful for everyone who gives of their holiday to make it happy for others. Our staff and volunteers helped in so many different ways. From helping to prepare the turkeys for roasting, to cooking all the sides, to setting up the Trinity Center, folding napkins, cutting pies, serving food, greeting guests and working trash detail, our staff and volunteers worked hard and it showed!

We can keep talking about how great of a day it was but they say a picture is worth a thousand words. So we think you might just enjoy taking a look at all the holiday fun we had on Thanksgiving Day.

We are so thankful to everyone who helped make this another great Thanksgiving at The Hope Center! If you’re interested in volunteering and helping make a difference in Hagerstown all year long, go to http://www.volunteerhagerstown.com to learn about the different volunteer opportunities available.

 

Contact Us!

Posted on by
Reply

Do you have any questions or comments about our various programs & ministries?

Are you looking to donate gently used items and would like to learn more about how to schedule a pick-up?

Do you know of a man who is in need of rehabilitation or housing?

General Inquiries

Thrift Store

  • Tel: 301.739.1114 (Hagerstown)
  • Tel: 717.263.9345 (Chambersburg)

Donation Scheduling & Information

  • Tel: 301.739.1165

Men’s Ministry / Foundations Life Recovery / Drug & Alcohol Rehabilitation

Soup Line / Food Pantry / Food Bank Program

Family Assistance Program (clothing, household items, etc.)

  • Tel: 301.739.1165

Wildside Youth Ministries / Camp Wild / Sunday Night Wild

Volunteer Info

 

Happy Birthday, Eddie!

Posted on by
Reply

The first Friday of each month is set aside to celebrate birthdays at The Hope Center, and this month we were able to celebrate another birthday with one of our residents, Eddie!

DSC_1252

Our friend, Stormy, provided another delicious birthday cake for our celebration!

Eddie has been at The Hope Center for a while and he is nearing the end of his program. He’s been working hard to straighten his life out and allow God to mold him into the man he was designed to be.

We asked Eddie to give us a quick testimony of what God is doing in his life. It’s great to see and hear another story of victory from one of our residents.

DSC_1257

“Upon my arrival to The Hope Center I can safely say that I was completely broken.  Between drug addiction and a complete disregard for my own life, I was heading to one of two places – prison or a casket.  I knew of a place called The Hope Center at Hagerstown Rescue Mission where I could go and change my life with God’s help.  I now have one month left in the long-term recovery program here at The Hope Center and I can proudly say that my life is changed!  I now live for God and His glory.  Once I graduate I will be going to Philadelphia, PA where I have been accepted into an internship program through Urban Hope Ministries.  I will have the wonderful opportunity to minister to kids and young adults who have or are around the same life crisis conditions I once had.  God took my mess of a life and is now going to use it for His glory!”

Eddie, just like the other men who come through The Hope Center, was on a path of destruction and death but he allowed God to make the necessary changes in his heart and mind and now he’s a totally new man.

Eddie is fighting the good fight and he’s able to celebrate another year of life thanks to God’s help. Hope has been restored into Eddie’s life and now he’s able to spread the message of hope & change to hundreds of people in Philadelphia.

Eddie is just one of the many men who seek real help from a real God at The Hope Center. Thanks to faithful supporters like you, we are able to provide our residents with a safe environment of love and support to help conquer their addictions and other destructive habits.

When you donate financially or through gifts such as food or gently used items for our Thrift Stores, you are helping to change lives. You may not realize it at the time but it’s true. People like Eddie are made brand new in Christ because of the generosity of loving and caring people like you.

Thank you for supporting The Hope Center at Hagerstown Rescue Mission. We thank God for friends like you because now a person like Eddie is able to change the world for Christ.

If you aren’t familiar with The Hope Center at Hagerstown Rescue Mission and want more info or would like to become a supporter of our ministry then call 301.739.1165 or email hagerstownrescue@verizon.net. Also, check out www.hagerstownrescue.org to learn more about the many programs and ministries we provide to our community.

Happy Birthday!

Posted on by
Reply

The first Friday of every month we celebrate the birthdays of any residents born that month.

This month we’re celebrating the birthdays of Michael & Walter!

Bday June 2013 2

Michael is one of our newer residents. He came to us from Baltimore and started in our program in February of this year. Michael is hoping to head back home eventually so he can return to work and support his family.

Walter has been with us since June of 2012. Walter came to us from all the way over on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. When he arrived, he had just been released from prison with only a paper bag containing a few personal items. Walter had nowhere to go and no transportation.

Even though Walter has been a faithful student in our Foundations program, he will be unable to graduate this summer due to very serious health issues requiring hospitalization and several surgeries. Now that his health issues are improving, Walter has about 7 more months in the program until he can graduate.

Even though Walter has dealt with health issues and other setbacks, he has remained very positive. His positive outlook on life and the future can be attributed to one major change in his life, and he isn’t afraid to tell you all about it!

Walter has a new future and hope because loves to tell anyone who will listen about how he came to know the Lord and will tell anyone without hesitation all that the Lord has done for him!

Bday June 2013 1

Join us in wishing Michael & Walter another year of life! And remember to continue to pray for these guys and the countless others who will enter our facilities in one way or another. So many lives are being saved and eternities changed!

Thank you for partnering with us and supporting this ministry of hope. We thank God for all the faithful friends who keep our doors open and our pantry full so that we can meet the physical needs and reach the spiritual needs of thousands of our neighbors who are struggling each day.

If you would like to learn how you can support this ministry or volunteer at The Hope Center, please call 301.739.1165 or email hagerstownrescue@verizon.net. You can learn more about this ministry at www.hagerstownrescue.org.

Get to Know Rick Roche

Posted on by
1

We are going to start focusing on some of the various staff and volunteers at The Hope Center who help to make this ministry run so effectively. These faces are the wonderful people that God has placed here to help change lives and provide hope to all types of people in the community who are looking for help in one way or another. We are so thankful to all of our staff and volunteers who give so much to reaching the least, the last and the lost.

My name is Rick Roche.  I am the Job Supervisor here at The Hope Center.  I have a BS in Pastoral Studies from Antietam Bible College.  I was ordained into the ministry in 2003 while serving as an assistant pastor and youth pastor at Grace Bible Church in Greencastle, PA for approximately 4-1/2 years.

The Lord opened the door here at The Hope Center in 2004 through a good friend who was a monthly speaker here in the evening chapel service.   I served as evening chaplain for 5 years, overseeing all chapel services, counseling residents and transient men in spiritual matters and life issues when needed, and supervising residents’ and transients’ activities.

In 2009/10 we as a staff team revamped our program and I moved to day shift as Residential Job Supervisor.  Our “Foundations” program requires that the program members all have job responsibilities to help them learn accountability and responsibility.  As Residential Job Supervisor, I have the challenge of matching the many varied personalities, skills and work ethics of the program members with the various job responsibilities of the different departments of The Hope Center which would include housekeeping, kitchen duties, recycling, Thrift Stores, donation drop-offs, trucks, maintenance, grounds keeping and farm work.

I also teach between 3 and 4 classes each week from the inherent Word of God about a relationship with Jesus Christ and the freedom from sin and slavery that He gives to all who trust in Him.  I’ve had the opportunity to see many lives changed during the past 8 years.  The Lord opened this door of opportunity and blessing and I am grateful to Him for allowing me to serve Him here at The Hope Center.