About 25 people got a glimpse inside the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission last week, along with a closer look at the operation that is helping treat those with addiction needs. The visit was part of “60 Minutes at the Mission,” a monthly event that opens up the facility for a tour, allowing those in attendance to learn about the nonprofit organization’s outreach.
Over coffee and pastries, guests listened as Rescue Mission president Rolf Geyling spoke a bit about the history of the mission, which was founded in 1965 by Mary and Chuck Pope. Today, he said, it is the only shelter open every night of the year between Ventura and Santa Maria.
Providing for people’s short-term needs like food and shelter is important, but by ignoring underlying issues like addiction, “we are not truly loving them as our faith compels,” Geyling said.
Recovery can be expensive, and many facilities charge up to $25,000 a month for in-patient programs. Geyling said the Rescue Mission can keep treatment program costs at about $25,000 per person per year, an amount that includes food, housing, education and treatment. Almost 90 percent of the mission’s $2.5 million budget go toward recovery efforts.
“There are a number of people in our community walking the precipice of losing it all if they don’t get treatment,” Geyling said.
One addict can cost the community upward of $100,000 just in emergency room costs, he said, making treatment an economical solution as well as a moral imperative.
L.B. Chandler, a staff member who works with the men’s treatment program, shared his story of addiction and treatment. After years of using cocaine and methamphetamines, Chandler went through the Rescue Mission program and has been clean for seven years.
“(The Rescue Mission) saved my life,” he said.
John Gabbert, senior program director at the women’s treatment facility, Bethel House, led a tour of the mission complex at 535 E. Yanonali St. Gabbert himself has a compelling story that stems from addiction. He lived in a cardboard box on Los Angeles’ Skid Row and said he weighed just 96 pounds when he entered rehab.
“I am very acquainted with the miracle of recovery,” he said.
Gabbert recalled sitting in front of the downtown Los Angeles Public Library as a homeless person, watching people in their daily routines.
“I remember feeling so detached and isolated from community,” he said.
Gabbert’s motto is now “Recovery happens in community,” which is exactly what the Rescue Mission’s residential treatment programs embody.
He shepherded the group through the mission’s courtyard and chapel, where worship services are held. A person can receive services from the Rescue Mission without attending chapel, he said, but he noted that services are “a resource for all residents.”
The tour also got a glimpse of the lunch room where the mission serves about 120 meals per night, a ministry that has seen an increase with the economic downturn.
A learning center, complete with computers, was the last stop on the tour, and serves as a career development center for the men in recovery at the mission. The women in treatment at Bethel House also have a career center, where they are able to develop résumés, hone interview skills and job hunt during the treatment process. Gabbert said 85 percent of people in treatment at the Rescue Mission leave with jobs, while most of the other 15 percent leave pursuing further education.
“We’re grateful and amazed what we’re able to do here,” Geyling exclaimed.
Click here for more information about the treatment programs available at the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission, or call 805.966.1316. Connect with the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission on Facebook. Follow the Rescue Mission on Twitter: @SBRescueMission.
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at lcooper@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk or @NoozhawkNews. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
