Like many direct service nonprofit chief executives, my work can be very demanding and stressful. It is a hands-on, full-throttle, 24/7 experience, year in, year out. No clocking in, no clocking out. Even when I squeeze out a few days to enjoy vacation with my family, my phone is kept busy by the inextricable demands of my work.

With operations in 5 Michigan counties, and dozens of programs that each day help over 2400 homeless veterans, domestic violence victims, returning citizens, indigent neighbors, at-risk youth and substance use disorder patients, you can imagine how many restless days and sleepless nights I have in a week.

And when I talk with other CEOs across the country and they paint their own experiential pictures of restlessness and sleeplessness, I am reminded that such “heavy weights” come with the territory. It’s not as hurdle-free or rosy as some may think. In fact, being a chief executive implies, to borrow President Harry S. Truman’s often-quoted words, that “the buck stops here” with me. If there’s anyone who should shoulder the most responsibilities in the organization, it’s me. When the going gets really tough for the organization, others may choose to clock out but I must stay plugged in to devise and deploy smart solutions. That often entails leaving the “office” late, and coming home feeling worn out.

Yet, I won’t trade that opportunity and experience for anything else. Helping people in need is my calling and passion – and doing so all these years at nonprofit Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), with the immeasurable support of ministry-minded staff members and volunteers, has indeed been a great pleasure and privilege.

The worst hurdle is the one you face alone. Thankfully, I have never been, and will never be alone in the hurdles we face at DRMM. Help is always near.

However, sometimes, I face the unfortunate situation of losing some staff members to the cold hands of death while they are still in active duty, doing their part in ensuring that others – the distressed, discouraged and disengaged – get the hope and help they need and deserve.

A few years ago, in 2016 to be precise, I hosted, at one of our Detroit-situated banquet halls, a well-attended luncheon in honor of the men and women who died while actively serving the metro Detroit community through DRMM. With their family members in attendance, I harped on their indelible contributions, and thanked the family members for encouraging and supporting them in making such contributions.

Without the support of family members – yours and mine – it is very difficult, if not impossible, for us to do what we do to make our community stronger and better. Much kudos to them!

From the start of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, my staff and I have been working nonstop on the frontlines, helping those who have nowhere else to turn to. While people in other areas of service have been able to work from their living rooms and basements, we have continued to work face-to-face at our various locations, of course observing the requisite physical distancing and wearing our PPE. It’s part of our firm commitment to the homeless, hungry and hurting around us.

And each day, as new hurdles emerge and problems pound, the results of our tireless work, and the resolve of our wonderful donors converge to get us going and going strong.

Or how else could we, amid the national economic malaise, have opened new locations and intensified our multi-pronged fight against COVID-19? How else?

The fact remains that donors – big and small – like seeing results and, by God’s grace, we deliver results every day at our various locations.

Many results.

So, I can’t thank my staff, volunteers and donors enough. In different ways, they help me deal with the operational, financial and environmental hurdles we face; they help me overcome the many problems that try to hinder us.

Their strengthening presence. Their helping minds. Their compassionate hands. Their kind words of encouragement. Their fervent prayers. Their checks. Their bequests and estate plan gifts. Their donation of valuable items – from clothes and cars to buildings. All of them have been priceless.

Just when I was wondering how to get the money I needed to open overflow shelters for our homeless clients, Ciena Healthcare president and founder, Mr. Qazi, kindly donated two more buildings to us. And I am talking about two big, newer and thus easier-to-maintain buildings.

Qazi had donated buildings and lots of money to us in the past. Each time, it was done quietly. No press conference. No cameras. The satisfaction of knowing that the poor and needy were being served with dignity was enough for him.

That’s the power of friendship. That’s the splendor of generosity. That’s “beloved community” in manifestation.

You see, I believe the “beloved community” that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr talked about is not esoteric. I see it in the increasing number of Detroit area teens that organize in-person and virtual events to raise funds to support us in serving the homeless. I see it in the immense support we get from Ford Motor Company Fund, Bank of America and other organizations that prioritize their corporate social responsibility. I see it in businesses like Gordon Foods that routinely donate palettes of food to help us feed the hungry.

Hardly does a day roll into the dustbin of history without me having the opportunity to encounter conscientious ambassadors of the “beloved community” in-person, by phone, through email or by reading their heartfelt letters. They give their support because they care for the needy as much as we do, and they trust that we will stretch their dollar to go the distance.

Some are retirees on meager income. Some are young people still charting their path in life. Some are middle-aged people in-between jobs. Some are well-to-do persons who derive joy from putting smiles on the faces of the “least of these’.

They, together with my nearly 300 staff members and 13, 000 volunteers, make it more fascinating and fulfilling to do more to help those who are not as privileged as we are.

They are the real heroes and heroines, and I salute them.

When we first met him, Peter was hungry, homeless, and living on the streets. Addiction robbed him of everything that mattered to him, including precious relationships with his children and grandchildren.

Peter lost all hope.

But because friends like you support DRMM, we were able to make a life-changing difference for Peter! First, we made sure he got a good, nutritious meal—and then, we gave him shelter from the streets.

That’s when he began to hope that he could get clean and stay that way forever . . . that he could rebuild and get a fresh start in life.

“I was sick and tired,” Peter says. “I knew DRMM had a treatment program, and I wanted to get into it. They welcomed me with open arms . . .

“If it weren’t for DRMM, I don’t know where I’d be.”

Today, Peter has overcome addiction, rebuilt his life, reclaimed the love of his family, and now has the culinary skills to get a good job.

Peter’s changed life started with the gift of a $1.95 meal from a friend like you . . .

So please give generously now to provide as many meals as you can to so many others like him who are in great need this Thanksgiving season.

Thank you for standing with us again throughout the holidays—and every day—and for sharing your blessings with people who are hungry, hurting, and facing homelessness in our community.

Please make a gift of meals now to help people who are hungry and hurting this Thanksgiving season!

 

Provide Thanksgiving Meals

Then, unbelievably, things got even worse.

Edward had always able to find work before, even if it didn’t always pay quite enough to cover rent AND food . . .

But then, there were NO jobs—no one was hiring!

It was a tough day when Edward walked through the doors at DRMM and said the words no one wants to say—I’m homeless, jobless, hungry . . . and I need help.

Your support gave Edward a much-needed meal and the assurance that he wouldn’t have to sleep on our city streets. “Being homeless is awful, very stressful,” he says. “I slept in vacant buildings and cars.”

DRMM staff explained that they also offer job and education counseling to help people find work and regain independence. Then we prayed together and watched as the fear and shame Edward felt for so long was replaced with hope that life really could be good again.

Edward says, “DRMM is the best organization. The whole program really works. If not for DRMM, I don’t know where I’d be.”

Your support, especially during this pandemic, is providing life-changing hope and lifesaving help for families and individuals just like Edward. Please make a gift now.

GIVE NOW

THANK YOU for Delivering Help and Hope to Neighbors in Need!

From the day COVID-19 was on the radar here at DRMM, caring friends and donors have rallied with prayer and generous support to ensure this ministry could respond swiftly and compassionately to a landscape that changed daily.

The past weeks have seen constant innovations to ensure the safety of staff, meet the needs people who are homeless, and continue outreach efforts to others in our community who are most vulnerable, including senior citizens and families with children.

Donor support made it possible for DRMM to feed more hungry people than ever during a time of crisis, providing 60% more meals and the delivery of thousands of food boxes. Your generosity also helped to immediately open and operate two new facilities, giving the homeless the ability to shelter in place. This action saved lives.

Support from donors is the reason DRMM continues to meet huge needs in the community, especially as the effects of lost jobs are pushing many of our neighbors to the brink of disaster.

This crisis is not over for the most vulnerable among us. In fact, that population is huge and growing. Please make a gift now to be the lifeline for so many desperate families and individuals!

GIVE NOW

You’ve probably heard or read important studies by Gallup, Airtasker and others that show remote employees are more productive than their in-office counterparts. I have.

And as an employer, it was appealing to me at first. Which employer doesn’t like having more output at lower cost?

I understand some are even thinking of closing their offices and having their employees work permanently from their various homes – a move that would save their organization’s a lot of money on rent/mortgage, maintenance, utilities and insurance, among others.

So, you quickly get the impression of a win-win. Employers are spending less and getting more while employees are saved the long commute hours and hassles, have more time to spend with family and friends, and could get extra pay from their cost-savings-happy employers.

That could work well for Accounting, Digital Marketing and Fundraising, and Software Creation and Sales firms, for instance. With the requisite skills, and functioning laptops packed with needed software and time clocking system, staff members could deliver great results from the convenience of their own homes (though they’d likely pay more for their utilities).

But what if the organization is Amazon? Or Henry Ford Hospitals? Or My Mom and Pop Restaurant? Or Jane and James Collision Shop? Or Car Wash For Hope? Amazon needs thousands of people working hands-on in warehousing and product fulfillment. Henry Ford needs many healthcare professionals diagnosing, administering relevant treatments, monitoring patients and talking face-to-face with them. Restaurants are not just about good food, snacks and drinks; they are also about the relaxation and social interactions that happen inside them. And the last time I checked, collision shops and car washes are the kind of small businesses in our communities that need hands-on staff.

Who knows? Maybe, one day, when people of my generation have become a matter of distant memory, all those services can completely be rendered remotely via a more sophisticated version of Zoom or Google Hangouts. But for now, most people involved in them have to show up at the applicable business premises and get things done and done right.

That’s how it is with direct service organizations like nonprofit Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM). You don’t provide homeless and jobless veterans needed hope and help from the comfort of your own home. Nor do you help a returning citizen gain stability and self-reliance with just phone or video conversations. You have to be there – where they are – and show them you care indeed.

Each day, we serve over 5000 meals at our various locations in metro Detroit. For obvious reasons, such nutritious meals have to be prepared and served by our chefs on site. There’s no other efficient and healthy way to do it. The distressed women and children at our shelters need many wrap around services that must be provided face-to-face, observing requisite physical distancing, of course. The same is true of the men and women in need of our detox and substance use disorder treatment services. As far as I know, nobody in any part of the globe administers prescription-only medication via phone or video conferencing. It is done in very close proximity to the patients.

Yes, the clamor for remote work is likely to increase post-pandemic, and it might become “the new normal” in a number of organizations. But there should be no ambivalence about the truism that while it is suitable in some work situations, and has obvious benefits, it is not yet appropriate and advisable in many organizations that rely heavily on physical presence and activities. Thus, when it comes to remote work, what is good for the goose is not necessarily good for the gander, and it is important that employers properly explain this to their valued employees.