May 7, 2025 • 43 mins
In this episode of Our Community, Our Mission, Jessica Croner shares how her heart for the unsheltered has guided her through years of ministry — from the Boise Rescue Mission to the Valley Mission in Pocatello, Idaho, and now as Director of Street Reach. A pivotal encounter at a Citygate Conference introduced her to TRM and the Street Reach and MAP model, which she brought back to Idaho and launched as quickly as possible. Driven by a deep sense of calling and a desire that began in childhood for everyone to know Jesus, Jessica has continually followed where the Holy Spirit leads — even when it’s uncomfortable.
Jessica speaks openly about how her walk with God sustains her through challenging moments. She reflects on the thin veil between her own story and those she serves, and how temporary discomfort is often part of God’s greater plan. For her, this work is not a job — it’s a calling. She encourages the Church to step boldly into its mission, trusting that God is calling His people back to what they were never meant to let go of. This episode is a powerful reminder that when we cast our nets wide, God meets us in the deep.
To learn more about TRM, Click Here!
To support TRM, Click Here!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you, lord, for this
day.
Lord, and just this time torecord this podcast.
Lord, I thank you for all ofour wonderful listeners and Lord
just pray that this episodewould be a blessing.
Lord, we thank you for ourwonderful guests today and Lord
just her heart for the peoplethat we serve.
Lord, pray your blessing overthis time.
In your holy name, we pray Amen.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
And hello everybody.
Thank you for joining us foranother edition of Our Community
, Our Mission, a podcast of theTopeka Rescue Mission here on
May 6th of 2025, episode number266.
Hi, Marian Crable, how are youdoing?
Speaker 3 (00:34):
I'm good, I'm absolutely good.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I'm doing all right, I'm doing all right.
This is being recorded onTuesday.
Yes it is May not air untilWednesday, but providing
anything doesn't change, we'redoing this kind of later in the
day today.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
We are we are.
And that makes it tough forJosh to get it turned around.
But I do my best.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
but you know, sometimes I need a little more
time.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
But I'll tell you what.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I didn't get my after lunch siesta today, so where's
our coffee, Josh?
Speaker 1 (01:02):
That's the thing.
Yeah, see, I'm running loosetoo.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Kim was going to do that.
Yeah, I think Kim was supposedto do that, oh right, but hey,
we had a good reason.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
we're doing it later.
That's right.
Why did we do this later?
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Well, do you want me to talk about it yet?
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
You do no.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Okay, yes.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Yes, no, no we have to get to the really important
stuff first.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
I knew that was going to happen.
You know I should have juststarted and then you might have
missed all this other love forme.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
You're going to like this one today, am I?
This is going to fit you, okay.
So again, for those who arefirst-time listeners or
repetitive listeners who reallylook forward to this piece, this
is the Topeka Rescue MissionResearch and development
department that pinpoints themost important parts of the day
every year on May 6th.
And one of those most importantparts, mary, is National Nurses
(01:50):
Day, did you know that I didnot know that.
Why is that important to you?
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Well, because I actually, you know, I never know
exactly how to answer this,because I'm going to say it like
other people say it oh, youused to be a nurse and I'm like,
oh no, I'm still a nurse.
When you go through all of that, you're always one.
You just aren't stillpracticing, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So I was a nurse.
Describe a nurse to us.
It's National Nurses Day.
We really need to know what anurse is.
At the end of the 19th centuryit was called the lady with the
lamp, as she is more widelyknown, florence Nightingale.
That's kind of where we get thenurse thing from.
But how would you describe anurse?
I've got a description for anurse, but I want to hear a
nurse describe a nurse.
Speaker 3 (02:29):
So I think a nurse is that person that is actually
the one that takes care ofeverything that the patient and
the family needs.
So they are compassionate, theydeliver on different things
that need to happen to a patient.
They're great listeners,they're usually quite empathetic
(02:51):
, they want to make people feelcared for and, at some of the
worst times in their lives,right Because you don't want to
be there, you don't want to besick.
You know, I was a cardiac nurse, so when you have problems with
your heart, it's scary.
So a nurse is just that personthat's there.
(03:13):
That's there.
Doctors do a lot of wonderfulthings, but nurses are there all
the time, 24 hours a day, tomake sure that people get what
they need, 24 hours a day, tomake sure that people get what
they need.
So I think they can be some ofthe most compassionate.
Let's see, I don't know exactlyhow to say this while also
(03:34):
being very much about oh no, no,you need to do this.
That's what I'm going todescribe the one that comes in
and says you need to lose weight.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
You need to get your blood pressure down.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
You need to quit eating that crap and you need to
lose weight, you need to getyour blood pressure down, you
need to quit eating that crapand you need to do more exercise
, and so that's notcompassionate.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
No, you're talking about a doctor's office nurse.
You're not.
I was a hospital nurse.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Ok, all right, so there's a difference.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
By the time, that nurse wasn't able to convince
you.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
now you're with me and now I'm going to have to be
nice to you, yeah, but we havesome great nurses the volunteer
Topeka Rescue Mission, one ofour- all-star heroes Sharon
Meisner, who's been thevolunteer leader of the clinic
for 30 some years.
I mean we have great nurses andwith Stormont Vale and our
access partnership and some ofour schools nurses.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
So we couldn't do any of what we do, and the
community would be at a completeloss if they did not have
nurses.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Yeah, so it's National Nurses Day.
Here on May the 6th it's alsoNational Creep Suzette Day Creep
Creep.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I don't think they're creepy, but they could be Creep
.
There you go.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
So what is that anyway Is?
Speaker 3 (04:39):
that pancake?
Oh, it's a pancake.
Okay, it's a French pancake,it's a.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
French pancake With some kind of sauce.
Okay, okay.
So, and it's also and LaManda'snot here today because she's
actually at a university, one ofreally important ones, called
Kansas State University, rightnow, for all the folks that love
Wildcats, so, but anyway, it'sNational Teacher's Day.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
And so LaManda's a former educator, and so we're
missing her on the podcast today, but she's there for a very
good reason at Kansas State.
So anyway, Miriam, those arethe really main things today.
Speaker 3 (05:10):
Those are the important things.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
Right, Then we've got some important updates, and
then we want to get to ourguests.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
Now today's been a really wonderful day and Josh
was there as well as a wholebunch of people on our team.
So there is a project calledRecycled Rides that's done by
Washburn Tech's automotivedepartment, and United Way is a
significant partner in that andwhat happens is that a car that
maybe had some issues or was inan accident or something like
(05:36):
that, and now the insurancecompany owns it, they donate
that car to Washburn Tech andthen the students and other
advisors like from Lewis, ToyotaCollision and all these
different kind of car folks yeah, the technical stuff you know
that, then come together to kindof guide those students in how
(05:58):
to repair this car and how toget it looking absolutely brand
spanking new.
And then what happens is theyput out applications or requests
for applications toorganizations like ours that we
can identify people that arereally in need of good
transportation, because we knowthe lack of transportation can
(06:19):
bring about incrediblechallenges.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
It can stop everything or it can help
accelerate the ability to moveforward, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Absolutely Well.
So this year we nominated oneof our facilities team members
that actually was just on apodcast not that long ago Chris
Harstadt, and he won.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
He won.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
They selected him.
So it is a group of studentsthat gets together the same
students that are working on thecar or somewhere in the
automotive department that cometogether to review all of the
different applications and makea decision on who they feel is a
good candidate for this vehicle.
This was car number 35 thatthey've done 35,.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
I was going to say I wonder if we know how long this
is going.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
It's been going on a long time and I believe this is
the second time or the thirdtime that somebody from TRM has
actually been awarded the carand it was wonderful to see
Chris and his son Drake.
Drake was so excited and thecar is beautiful and there's all
these people in the room and Ithink Chris was incredibly
(07:26):
overwhelmed by it all, and notin a bad way, but just such a
cool guy.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
He's such a cool guy.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Right and Brett Martin talked about Chris and
was the one that introduced him,and Dr Mazacheck was there from
Washburn University.
There were just a lot of of alot of people that were there to
recognize the efforts of thestudents and also the ability of
Chris to potentially reallymove forward now in a different
(07:54):
kind of way and get into housingand all the things that can
come now because he hastransportation.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
Chris's story is he was living in a tent with his
son and finally knew it was timeto get out of there, ended up
in Topeka, came to the Topekarescue mission and had a big
decision to make, and this isall on the podcast that he
shared with us.
So it's nothing that we'resharing out of turn here, but he
ended up deciding if he wasgoing to keep his drugs on him
or throw him in the trash.
He threw him in the trash andnever looked back.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Never looked back.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
So now he's employed Topeka Rescue Mission has that
automobile Wants his son to beraised well yes, and he wants to
be a grandpa someday, yes, soyeah.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
It was a beautiful event, and the whole facilities
team was there, as well as someothers of us, and so it was just
a really special time.
Josh, do you know which numberpodcast that is?
Speaker 1 (08:41):
I don't, I can't remember.
Off the top of my head itwasn't too long ago.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
No, it was just four or five ago.
Yeah, we're 266.
But yeah, yeah.
So we'll post about the eventtoday, maybe link to the podcast
.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
So it was great it was, it was wonderful.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Well, we have a very special guest today who happens
to be a really cool friend ofmine that I've gotten to know
pretty well.
She, that I've gotten to knowpretty well.
She has a name, but I call herIdakann, and that is a
combination between Idaho andKansas.
Her name is Jessica Kroener andshe is the former CEO of the
Pocatello Rescue Mission.
Pocatello, Idaho had formerlybeen with the Boise Rescue
Mission Came here a couplesummers ago.
(09:22):
I think it was to visit TopekaRescue Mission.
So, Jessica, welcome to ourcommunity, our visit, Topeka
Rescue Mission.
So, Jessica, welcome to ourcommunity, our mission.
Speaker 4 (09:26):
Thank you, I'm glad to be here.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Yeah, so you are director of Street Reach now.
Some of us like to call itOperation Street Reach, but we
got rid of the Operation StreetReach.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
I had to throw it in.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
I had to throw it in.
Do not edit that out.
So where it started, we began aStreet Reach program here at
Topeka Rescue Mission, let's sayprobably 16 years ago somewhere
in that neighborhood.
15, 16 years ago we had notbeen out there to do that and we
began.
We've learned a lot of thingsand part of the learning process
(09:59):
was forced kind of our handduring the pandemic to create a
mobile access partnership calledMAP.
That's not Operation StreetReach, but we learned a lot how
to do that.
Because of that, you came tovisit that out of Pocatello.
Speaker 4 (10:12):
I did.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
So talk about.
We want to get current with you, but talk about what brought
you.
How'd you find out about Topeka, Kansas, from Idaho and what
brought you here to visit us?
Was it summer before lastSummer, before Two summers ago?
I don't know.
It's been a while In the recentpast.
It's been in the recent past.
It was in the summer.
Speaker 4 (10:32):
Yes, I believe it was in 2023, actually, and it was
in November.
So just at the end.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Oh, was it?
Was it November?
Yeah, okay, it was a warmNovember.
It was a warm November.
Speaker 4 (10:42):
I think it was like November 1st or something.
You guys were just on Halloweenand you guys were setting up
Christmas the next day.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
I was like we're full on in.
I was going to swear it waswarm out, okay, well, never mind
me.
So your name is Jessica, right,and you were originally in
Idaho, never mind.
So, jessica, why did you comehere?
How did you find out aboutTopeka, kansas?
You're out there working as anew director at the Polk Teller,
or fairly new in Idaho, and soyou came here why?
Speaker 4 (11:11):
I came here because I had met LaManda down in Florida
at the National City Conferenceand there was just kind of a
flag for her.
I didn't really introducemyself to her, I didn't do
anything, I just sat back andwent, okay, well, god, what's
next there?
And got back to Idaho andactually I was at Valley Mission
(11:37):
.
That's right, valley Mission, oh, okay, yeah, in Pocatello, okay
, and was sitting and we're justkind of figuring out programs
as we're trying to start up thismission and I was sitting and
we're just kind of figuring outprograms as we're trying to
start up this mission and I went, what about street reach?
And like everything cametogether that we didn't need to
go.
Most missions were going fromshelters to streets and it
(11:59):
occurred to us that we couldbuild from streets to shelter
and that there was a lot of goodin that for our neighbors and
for us, and so I said well,there's this person in Topeka.
So I got onto the Sege Networkand looked up LaManda and sent
her an email and she was likewe're about to shut it down for
(12:21):
the summertime because it wasgoing to be moving indoors.
So she was like come.
Come, now Come right now sobooked a ticket and I was here
the next week and sitting withyou guys and went out.
Speaker 2 (12:34):
Part of that CityGate network is rescue missions,
getting to go to conferences andmeet each other and that kind
of thing, and so you heard aboutit.
You came here and I know thatyou and I got a chance to visit
just a little while while you'rehere that time and uh, uh, mary
, I remember just saying man,this, this, this woman really is
full of the spirit of the Lord.
(12:54):
You know this this such aincredible um presence of Christ
in your life, and so um, we, we, we are always seeing that,
while you were here, Never knewyou'd be coming back, but
especially at this level.
So you got the chance to seethe Mobile Access Partnership
and you gleaned from there.
(13:15):
So what happened next?
Speaker 4 (13:17):
Yeah, I got to do Mobile Access.
I actually got to go and do anoutreach with Street Reach.
I went down on the north sideof the river and and did that
with them and so, um, I gleaneda lot from that, um, a lot of
different pieces that I couldtake back and, you know, some
different things that I altereda little bit but the bones were
(13:38):
all there and you guys handedover the bones pretty
straightforward and said stickyour name on it and go go do
your thing, I did I did and, uh,went back.
Um, I think the day I got back Ipitched it to my board and said
this is where I think we needto begin.
They approved it and, um, byjanuary, so about eight weeks
(14:01):
later, we were out on thestreets and I think it was May
of last year we started mobileaccess in Pocatello as well,
isn't that cool, it's incredible.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
So before Pocatello you were in Boise with the Boise
Rescue Mission.
That's a pretty well-developedrescue mission there.
It's nationally known.
What did you do there?
Speaker 4 (14:24):
So I was in their women and children's shelters.
Um, so I started in the Boisedowntown uh shelter, uh working
swing shift, and um then movedout to their Nampa location and
then kind of was between the twoas I as I needed.
Um, I had some different thingsgoing on in my world, so as
(14:45):
they began to watch God shiftingand moving me, they began to
pull me into that moreadministrative end, and so I got
to do a lot of data entry for awhile which was what I needed
just for myself in that time,and then, when I told them that
I had been offered a job to bethe executive director, they
(15:06):
pulled me in and they began tocoach me up.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Get you a little more ready for that next step.
Yeah, so what's the distancebetween Boise and Pocatello For
those that aren't acutelyfamiliar with Idaho?
Speaker 4 (15:18):
With Idaho, so Boise is.
Speaker 2 (15:20):
It's that funny state with that little smokestack on
top right.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
That's the one.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Corbelina at the top right, Boise is on.
It's that funny state with thatlittle smokestack on top right.
That's the one, Corvallina, atthe top right.
Speaker 4 (15:25):
It's called the panhandle.
Yes, yeah.
So Boise is on the western,about an hour in from the
farthest west, and Pocatello isabout an hour in on the farthest
east.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Okay, so both sides, so you've got about a four-hour
drive between the two.
She had a lot of greatrelationships in Boise.
Still today, you got over inPocatello to really help them
get some foundational thingsestablished.
One of the things that I reallyappreciated is that you and I
got to meet each other when youwere here, whatever time of year
that was, and then we stayed incontact with each other CEO or
(16:01):
executive director to executivedirector and started talking
through stuff, and that was areal blessing for me, and so we
really weren't talking about youcoming to Topeka to be a part
of the Topeka Rescue Mission.
So what happened for you tothink maybe this is where you
wanted to apply to be thedirector of Street Reach?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
You know, it's interesting because when I came
to visit, I think I had been atValley Mission about six months
and I was like I started therein May and come over here to
visit.
And as I was pulling out oftown from visiting you all, I
just was crying and I felt theHoly Spirit just say are you
willing to come?
And I said yeah, I'll come.
(16:49):
But it didn't make any sensegiven that I had just started
this other position and as Iwalked out the next year, god
did a lot of good things where Iwas and I know that he planted
a lot of good seed.
And then I was in bed one nightasking him what next, and he
(17:12):
said to come to Topeka.
And so I opened my phone andlooked at it and we had the
director of street.
Reach was open and I had ameeting the next week already
set with Amanda, just to checkin and say hi.
And so I sent her a message atlike 3.30 in the morning and
(17:32):
said Well, she's probably up.
Could we move that up?
And I think the next day Ispoke with her on the phone and
said God's told me to shift andI'm thinking it's to Topeka.
And you said well, amanda justgot your message.
She's pretty excited about it.
And I waited a little bit.
(17:53):
I needed a minute to pray.
And I waited a little bit.
I needed a minute to pray.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
So it's a big decision for you.
I know that you have aconnection with the Lord and you
pray and you look for answersand you got a direction to come
here.
But then we hear those things,we understand those things,
however, we communicate with theLord, but to do them is another
thing.
And to actually pack up, moveclear to Kansas.
(18:17):
Do you like the beautifulmountains here, like you like
over in Idaho?
Speaker 4 (18:22):
This is like skiing territory.
It's the greatest thing.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Skiing for me, because I would never go down a
hill like that ever with snow onit and slippery and hit trees.
I mean ski Kansas right.
Snow on it and slippery and hittrees, I mean ski Kansas right.
So you know, being in Idaho Ithink much of your life and then
(18:47):
coming to Kansas, what was thatlike?
You knew the Lord wanted you tocome and so you came.
You're stepping out in faith.
How's that for a person?
I mean, there's been peoplethat experienced that.
I mean some people go to Africaor some people to stay in their
own home forever.
But you made a pretty bigdecision to leave the executive
director position to come workfor another rescue mission for
another executive director.
(19:08):
You had to know, really, thatyou know that that's what you're
supposed to do.
So did everything just kind offall into place real easy?
I mean, was it all smooth?
She's laughing.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
It was magical.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
It was like why I get to go beyond the streets in
Topeka, Kansas, where they'rereally hard to find the homeless
people anymore, because thecamps aren't together anymore.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
And it gets really cold and really hot.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Uh-huh yeah.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
Got a lot more bugs here and I think that night
before I messaged LaManda, Italked to.
God about tornadoes and I stillhave conversations with God
about tornadoes.
He didn't seem worried aboutthem.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
You mean, he wasn't really troubled by tornadoes.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
I think I'm there too .
I live in Kansas.
It's not, god forsaken?
Very true.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
It's God's country, so there's always an adjustment.
But I remember talking to youhere a number of months ago and
you said you really feel likethis was home now.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Definitely it was a big adjustment to feel um, not
surrounded by the mountains,because where I grew up they
were kind of in the distance alittle bit, but I mean you could
see them.
But then where I've lived as anadult, like I'm right in them,
whether that be in boiser andpocatello, I would sit in my
living room and just there's amountain sitting right there
yeah, just across the street andyou could go walk up it if you
(20:41):
so desired.
But I think there was like asense of safety and even when I
came and visited, I felt likethis is just open and there is
nowhere to run.
I mean, there's a lot of placesto run, but there's nowhere to
hide, it's just all hide, it'sjust all flat.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
It's just all flat.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
There's something.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
You don't realize that unless you go somewhere.
I remember going back east tovisit my daughter and family,
washington DC area and it'strees everywhere.
Get off the KCI and driving backto Topeka I'm going.
Man, this is the farm countryReally is.
It's just wide open space andbig sky, big sky, yeah Well, or
(21:21):
Montana, they call that big skycountry over there because
there's mountains and big sky.
So, jessica, the assignmentthat the Lord has given you to
work with the unshelteredobviously this wasn't a new
thing to you.
You'd been doing that in Idaho,been working in shelter and out
of shelter Is there a commonperson or a common situation,
regardless of where people arewhen they're unsheltered, that
(21:43):
you could help people tounderstand?
Is it different for peoplebeing unsheltered in Idaho
versus Topeka area, or is itpretty much?
You're seeing the same thingwhether it's in Boise, pocatello
or Topeka, in regards to justkind of who the people are?
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Interestingly enough.
I think there are some subtledifferences.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
When I was in.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
Boise and we would do counts and whatnot.
In the shelter, most of ourpeople were graduate college,
many of them with master'sdegrees.
That were homeless, that werehomeless them with master's
degrees.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
That were homeless.
That were homeless.
Speaker 4 (22:18):
Okay, that's interesting.
And just different lifesituations and we were surprised
.
I mean it wasn't everybody, butit was a larger percentage.
Moving across to Pocatello,many hadn't completed high
school.
Interesting, couldn't read atall, I mean just in the same
state.
How, how different that can be.
(22:40):
And then I feel like in topekathere's almost a mix of the two,
um, especially going fromstreets and now this last week,
getting some time to be in theshelter and help there, um
seeing kind of the differencebetween those populations within
the same, within the same city.
So, um, you know, obviouslywe're all human.
(23:01):
I think what struck me aboutrescue mission when I first
started was the veil between meand the guests that I serve is
nothing and it is only by gracethat I sit on this side of it so
true um, it's, it has nothingto do.
I mean, there are points where Ican look at somebody's story
and say it's horrific comparedto the story that I have, and
(23:23):
then there are times that I cansay my story is horrific
compared to somebody else's andit's all about other factors,
you know, um, how people areable to cope just a lot of
different things that go into it.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
There's a gentleman that I know over in Lawrence
Kansas who helps coordinate abreakfast program every morning
for the homeless and the peoplewho are struggling, and his
story was that his own son hadsuffered from a mental health
challenge and so they were ableto get his son services to be
(24:01):
able to get him back on theright road, and he said it can
happen to any family at any time.
He said so I'm here for thepeople who don't have a me.
Speaker 3 (24:10):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
I'm here for the people who don't have a me, and
so if we don't have thosesupport systems, then, whether
it's family or friends orwhatever, that thin veil could
result in nowhere to go.
And so, by virtue of that, godand community has come together
to create places like rescuemissions, to be that family to
help people through their time.
So there's some similarities,kind of blended here from what
(24:35):
you've experienced in Idaho ontwo different parts of the state
in regards to the kind ofexperiences, jessica, what I
don't know if this is the rightterm, but what draws you to work
with the homeless, what drawsyou to especially the
unsheltered?
Not everybody does this.
What Uh-huh it's the best thingever.
(24:55):
Not a long line of peoplestanding to say I want that job.
Not everybody does this.
What Uh-huh?
It's the best thing ever?
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Not a long line of people standing to say I want
that job.
You know, ever since I canremember when I was just tiny,
whether it was blowing outcandles on a birthday cake or I
would make up games, like when Ihad to take out the trash, like
(25:20):
throwing in the dumpsters, andif I hit it I got my wish right.
But every wish that I ever madewas that, um, everybody would
come to know Jesus and that theywould they would get to walk
with him, like that's alwaysbeen my heart.
And as I got, older, I knew that, um, I wanted to do mission.
What I didn't understand wasthat mission existed right here
at home.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
I thought that meant going abroad.
Speaker 4 (25:42):
And then I got old enough that I could do that and
that door didn't open for me fora number of different reasons.
And before I got into rescuemission, before I ended up at
Boise Rescue, I had just beenpraying and going God, you've
poured so much into me.
(26:05):
Now begin to pour me out ontoothers and initially before I
got to Boise Rescue, it was, youknow, a lot around the pandemic
and stuff and I just went outand mowed lawns and just joined
a mow crew and just went out andI was like measurable outcomes
in a day, like I had to help alot of jobs, including other
(26:27):
executive director positions,and I was just done and ready to
be away from people and just godo something that I could clock
in and measurable.
And so I'm out there mowingthese lawns and all these little
Sunday school songs God broughtback to me of like I can do all
things Because it's a hard work.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
It is like very exhausting.
Speaker 4 (26:48):
And I was out there with young men much younger than
I am.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
You were little kids then.
Speaker 4 (26:57):
Yeah, much younger than I am and I was out one
night and I asked God, like, isthis still where I'm supposed to
be?
And he said you can go, butcast your net wide.
And so the next day I spentpraying and then I resigned and
I cast the net wide and BoiseRescue popped up and I asked God
(27:17):
.
I said, okay, I'll do that ifyou keep it there for a month.
And I went on my way and amonth later I was there and so I
applied and they called me thatday which is why I said a month
and then with them, I said,okay, I want to clock in, I want
to clock out, I don't want tobe a manager.
(27:37):
And they let me do that for acouple months.
Speaker 2 (27:42):
That's where we get people in.
We go sure, that's no problem.
So you're a manager.
Speaker 4 (27:49):
But then God's just been so good in teaching me and
teaching me how to see the heartof individuals and how to have
my ear tuned to him to be ableto see that one that is in front
of me.
And you know, in shelter thatcan be really challenging,
because you've promised safetyto a hundred and some odd people
(28:09):
a night and um, depending onwhich facility you are in and
when we go the street.
It is a paradigm shift that Ireally enjoy, that I go to your
home and I respect you where youare and I build a relationship
there and I have a realrelationship with you there.
And then, whenever you come tomy home now you know that my
(28:33):
rules are not about my love foryou.
My rules are about the safetyof, not about my love for you.
My rules are about the safetyof everybody and my love for
everybody, but I can establishthat in your home first.
So that was kind of what drewme.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
I think that one of the things that we've come to
realize is the extreme value, ifwe're going to address chronic
homelessness, solve chronichomelessness, to have this, what
you've just spoken to, is to goto their home.
You call it their home.
Maybe a tent, maybe a car,maybe a lean-to, maybe a hole in
the ground, right, it's theirhome, to respect them in their
(29:12):
home, to show them love in theirhome, right there.
And then when they're ready tocome to your home, which is a
shelter or wherever it is, thenthe love is still there.
But now I showed you respect,show respect here.
I mean, that's huge, isn't?
Speaker 3 (29:25):
it.
It's huge, it's well.
Isn't it really the gamechanger, right?
You know we talk all the timeabout it really is about
relationship, and this, whatJessica is describing, is just
evidence of that.
Speaker 2 (29:39):
Yeah.
So, jessica, I think rightafter you came and joined the
team here and were leadingStraight Reach, we're having
some weather issues here, and soyou got to stay with the
homeless as their warmingcenters were opening up and
actually didn't get to go homeand one of the reasons for the
(30:00):
first winter vortex we had itwas too dangerous to go home for
people to drive, and so you gotimmersed right in it, didn't
you?
I did With the guests that werecoming in off the streets, who
were staying here for a periodof time and actually being here
and caught in the children'spalace.
So were things going throughyour mind like, hmm, we had snow
(30:22):
in Pocatello, but we didn'thave this?
Was there any time where youwere wondering if you made the
right decision?
Or were you pretty confident,since you heard the voice of the
Lord as you hear him, that thiswas the right thing?
Speaker 4 (30:35):
I think there have been many points along this that
I'm like okay, god, are we?
What are we doing?
Um, but he's been so clear, um,and he brings me back to it.
Even last week I was kind of ina moment and he had somebody
(30:56):
that I've never even met call meon the phone.
Say, your name popped out on alist and I need to call and I
need to pray for you.
And, um, I called him back andit was just like this.
This time has been, in someways, some of the most painful,
and yet, if there was ever atime that God was just screaming
(31:17):
out to me that he's there, Iwas thinking about it this
morning because when I wasgrowing up.
I trained dogs alive, trainedseeing-eye dogs and other
people's dogs, because theyfound, of course.
Speaker 2 (31:32):
Come fix my dog.
Speaker 4 (31:36):
And sometimes dogs are just like freaking out, and
in that moment I'll take them bythe collar and I get their eyes
and we just wait, and I waitfor them to just come and to
focus and I felt like so much ofthe time in the last six months
God's been like oh, he's hadyou by the collar, maybe more by
(32:00):
the cheeks, and just go and putyour eyes right here.
Speaker 1 (32:03):
Your eyes are right here.
Speaker 4 (32:03):
And they're not on any of the rest of it, and he
just calls me back to that placeand sometimes it's just in even
screaming out to me and beinglike be still, you are fine, be
still.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
This is a personal walk and journey with him that
you've just described to us.
How does that help you to dowhat you do with going out in
the streets to people's homespersonally, but how does it help
the person that you'reministering to Do you feel that
you've got that kind ofconnection with the creator of
the universe, who has told youthat he loves everybody?
Yeah, and some peoplemisunderstand or don't really
(32:41):
like people.
They don't understand, judgethem.
How does that help you to beable to help them?
This walk that you have withthe Lord?
Speaker 4 (32:50):
I think that he is well.
We know that he is the goodfather.
He tells us that he is a goodfather and going through this
experience and for it to be asuncomfortable when we ask our
neighbors to do something on thestreets or when we ask our
guests to do something in theshelters, we know it's
(33:12):
uncomfortable.
And in this whole season, whenI really boil everything down,
I'm like I'm uncomfortable andit's okay that I'm uncomfortable
for a while, because mydiscomfort right now is toward a
greater good and I can see that.
But I can see that because I'vewalked step after step after
(33:33):
step with the good father toknow that he knows and that that
temporary discomfort ends in aplace of blessing and abundance
that I wouldn't have experiencedhad I not walked through that.
So then, when I'm out and I amworking with the one who is in
front of me and I'm listening towhat the Holy Spirit's telling
(33:55):
me about that one, the goodfather is not asking all of them
to do the exact same thing.
It's not a black and whitesituation.
I can have some guidelinesabout what we'll do for safety
or for health, but when I lookat one and I say I just need you
to stand up today, becauseJesus won't even stand up for me
(34:19):
, and I need you just to beginwith standing and walking,
physically walking, and thatthat's the way that I can show
compassion and love toward you.
And then for another one thatis in a different spot and that
they need to know how to hold anappointment and to keep an
(34:41):
appointment and to followthrough on that appointment, and
I can work with them onincentivizing toward that in a
different way, I can havecompassion for both, because I
recognize that it'suncomfortable and in talking
with my team about that and thatit's not going to be this black
(35:01):
and white thing, what we'vetalked about is the good father
doesn't necessarily look at whatseems fair.
He looks at what is best for you, because you are the individual
that he is concerned about, andI told them like I think it's
helped because I was raised thatway.
My mom would be like you knowwhat it was?
(35:22):
My sister and I she's like youboth get things at times that
the other one doesn't get andyou both come out just fine.
There's not going to be a fair.
Sometimes you get something,sometimes you do.
We're not going to play thatgame.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Somebody one time said that God does not love us
all equally.
He loves us all uniquely timesay that God does not love us
all equally.
He loves us all uniquely and sohe loves, but he loves uniquely
and that's so.
Not every unsheltered, homelessindividual that you're
encountering needs the same kindof response as you mentioned,
even having somebody you know.
(35:58):
Let's stand up you know, becausesome people may be strung out
on drugs or maybe don't feellike they can do anything
anymore.
They're so depressed orwhatever.
No, let's, let's do the verybasic thing which makes them
uncomfortable.
That's going to be a littleuncomfortable for you at
sometimes, I would assume.
To take a risk to challengesomebody's uncomfortableness Is
that.
Is that ever a problem?
Speaker 4 (36:19):
Yes, yes.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
People who can't see.
Jessie, she's not real big andso you're very petite, and so
going into these homeless camps,do you ever be very concerned?
We know the potential ofviolence is all around us all
the time, regardless of where weare.
How do you go out there?
You're not like Mike Tyson so,and you're going and challenging
(36:45):
people's systems sometimes.
Speaker 4 (36:50):
I decided, actually, I think the day that I came and
visited and I was about to headout on streets I don't remember
exactly what was said, but therewas some agitation in the camps
and you guys had told me aboutthat and in my mind I thought I
wonder what my board's going tothink.
Because I'm thinking you'resupposed to stay alive if you're
(37:13):
the executive director, you'renot supposed to.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
You're supposed to visit.
I'll stay there forever.
Speaker 4 (37:18):
And I wasn't sure how much of a risk and I thought no
, it's my life, it's my choiceand I'll go out.
And in making that decision,the reality is that God is in
charge of my days and my comingand my going, and he has set me
in my time and place anduniquely designed me for this.
(37:43):
So I can make the decision andI've had the conversation with
my family of if the worst casehappens that I did what I loved
and I did it to the end.
So I wake up in the morning andI go out and I do what I love.
Speaker 2 (38:00):
So there's a piece in that that this is my assignment
.
This is what I'm going to do,mary.
You and I go out and I do whatI love.
So there's a piece in that thatthis is my assignment.
This is what I'm going to do,mary.
You and I have talked and otherpeople we've talked on.
The podcast is working at.
Speaker 3 (38:08):
Topeka Rescue.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Mission is not a job.
It's calling, without a doubt.
Without a doubt, you know itpersonally, josh.
You know it.
I've known people here.
If you don be, because it'shard, it's very difficult, it
can be dangerous, but it canalso be very rewarding.
If you know where you'resupposed to be and every day you
know this is God going to takeyou where he wants you to go and
(38:31):
utilize you to be able to helpthose who believe he doesn't
care or nobody cares to go there, because a lot of people won't
go do what you do.
They won't, they would say don'tdo it, but you do it and your
team does it.
Jessica, what is the hope thatyou have going forward?
(38:51):
We've had this continuedincrease nationally with people
who have no place to go.
Shelters are busting at theseams.
We have a recent uncertaintyabout these federal programs and
how they're going to beadjusting and shifting around in
regards to housing andopportunities.
We know that there's an agingpopulation of individuals who
(39:12):
are becoming homeless andfalling into the chronic
homelessness, and so you don'thave a very large team that you
work with, but you do intersectwith the law enforcement Topeka
Police Department, vallejo andothers.
What's your hope with this kindof flood or pending flood of
homeless that we need to bedoing to reach those who are
(39:35):
unsheltered now and to be readyfor the more that may come?
Speaker 4 (39:40):
You know, I believe that God is just doing a good
thing.
I believe that he's doing agood thing currently and that he
is doing a good work in hischurch and in his people right
now.
And we can begin to look at itall and we can look at numbers
and we can get all stressed outabout that, or we can look and
recognize that God is cleansinghis people and that he is
(40:03):
equipping his people and he'sdrawing his people back to what
he called them to.
In my perspective, the churchhanded over things that it never
should have handed over yearsago.
And at this point in time, thechurch is coming back to and
being called back to what it wasoriginally handed to manage.
(40:23):
And so, as I look at thecurrent landscape of things, I
actually feel incrediblyencouraged because I believe
that God is doing a good workand he is bringing back what we
were originally designed for andtaking us out of our comfort
zone and out of our buildingsand back into the lives of
(40:44):
people, because that's where twoor three are gathered, that's
where he is, it's not within afacility.
And while those facilitiesserve us and I have no judgment
toward that, I think for a whileit became a social club and the
church is losing its socialclub identity and coming back to
the heart of Christ.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
That's brave what you just said, but I think a lot of
people are realizing thatthere's kind of a remake of the
modern day church to be morequestioning, at least about what
its purpose is, and to when youstart to question what your
purpose is, you might get to theright conclusion.
And that is to be more activein community and helping.
(41:28):
And there's just a whole lotabout the poor and those who are
in need in the scripture.
I mean we can't get around that.
I mean it's not an option.
Some people cop out and sayJesus said the poor will always
be with you.
I remember Lynn Johnson, whowas director of Health and Human
Services, said yeah, but I wantto try proving wrong, so let's
go for it.
But that's a cop out just tosay they'll always be with us.
(41:51):
Because there's a whole lot moreto talk about those who are
following Christ and what we areto do to minister to those who
are in need.
And it's not just homeless,it's not just hungry.
It could be the neighbor orsomebody in your own family, or
your student in school, or yourteacher or the principal, or on
and on and on, or your coworker.
Is that we are supposed to belight in people's darkness.
(42:12):
And so well, jessica, I'm gladyou're here in Topeka.
And, yeah, so many positivereasons that you're here.
I think one of the biggest isnot only your passion for those
who suffer, but the Jesus thatyou bring with you here.
Is there anything else you'dlike to share today?
(42:33):
Um, on your very first Topekarescue mission podcast Won't be
your last.
Speaker 4 (42:39):
No, I think I'm good Okay.
Speaker 2 (42:41):
All right, well, thank you for being here.
Thank you for joining us today.
Thank you for listening to ourcommunity, our mission.
If you'd like more informationabout Topeka Rescue Mission, you
can go to trmonlineorg.
That's trmonlineorg, and you canfind about volunteer
opportunities, also someopenings for jobs which aren't
jobs, correct, correct.
(43:02):
Miriam had to fill thosepositions and if you've heard
anything today, you've heardabout a young lady who has said
yes to God, and it's okay for usall say yes to God because he
will take us to places thatmaybe we're uncomfortable, but
that's where we find the joy.
Thanks for listening.
Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you, lord, for this
day.
Lord, and just this time torecord this podcast.
Lord, I thank you for all ofour wonderful listeners and Lord
just pray that this episodewould be a blessing.
Lord, we thank you for ourwonderful guests today and Lord
just her heart for the peoplethat we serve.
Lord, pray your blessing overthis time.
In your holy name, we pray Amen.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
And hello everybody.
Thank you for joining us foranother edition of Our Community
, Our Mission, a podcast of theTopeka Rescue Mission here on
May 6th of 2025, episode number266.
Hi, Marian Crable, how are youdoing?
Speaker 3 (00:34):
I'm good, I'm absolutely good.
How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I'm doing all right, I'm doing all right.
This is being recorded onTuesday.
Yes it is May not air untilWednesday, but providing
anything doesn't change, we'redoing this kind of later in the
day today.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
We are we are.
And that makes it tough forJosh to get it turned around.
But I do my best.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
but you know, sometimes I need a little more
time.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
Exactly.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
But I'll tell you what.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I didn't get my after lunch siesta today, so where's
our coffee, Josh?
Speaker 1 (01:02):
That's the thing.
Yeah, see, I'm running loosetoo.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Kim was going to do that.
Yeah, I think Kim was supposedto do that, oh right, but hey,
we had a good reason.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
we're doing it later.
That's right.
Why did we do this later?
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Well, do you want me to talk about it yet?
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
You do no.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
Okay, yes.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
Yes, no, no we have to get to the really important
stuff first.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
I knew that was going to happen.
You know I should have juststarted and then you might have
missed all this other love forme.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
You're going to like this one today, am I?
This is going to fit you, okay.
So again, for those who arefirst-time listeners or
repetitive listeners who reallylook forward to this piece, this
is the Topeka Rescue MissionResearch and development
department that pinpoints themost important parts of the day
every year on May 6th.
And one of those most importantparts, mary, is National Nurses
(01:50):
Day, did you know that I didnot know that.
Why is that important to you?
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Well, because I actually, you know, I never know
exactly how to answer this,because I'm going to say it like
other people say it oh, youused to be a nurse and I'm like,
oh no, I'm still a nurse.
When you go through all of that, you're always one.
You just aren't stillpracticing, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So I was a nurse.
Describe a nurse to us.
It's National Nurses Day.
We really need to know what anurse is.
At the end of the 19th centuryit was called the lady with the
lamp, as she is more widelyknown, florence Nightingale.
That's kind of where we get thenurse thing from.
But how would you describe anurse?
I've got a description for anurse, but I want to hear a
nurse describe a nurse.
Speaker 3 (02:29):
So I think a nurse is that person that is actually
the one that takes care ofeverything that the patient and
the family needs.
So they are compassionate, theydeliver on different things
that need to happen to a patient.
They're great listeners,they're usually quite empathetic
(02:51):
, they want to make people feelcared for and, at some of the
worst times in their lives,right Because you don't want to
be there, you don't want to besick.
You know, I was a cardiac nurse, so when you have problems with
your heart, it's scary.
So a nurse is just that personthat's there.
(03:13):
That's there.
Doctors do a lot of wonderfulthings, but nurses are there all
the time, 24 hours a day, tomake sure that people get what
they need, 24 hours a day, tomake sure that people get what
they need.
So I think they can be some ofthe most compassionate.
Let's see, I don't know exactlyhow to say this while also
(03:34):
being very much about oh no, no,you need to do this.
That's what I'm going todescribe the one that comes in
and says you need to lose weight.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
You need to get your blood pressure down.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
You need to quit eating that crap and you need to
lose weight, you need to getyour blood pressure down, you
need to quit eating that crapand you need to do more exercise
, and so that's notcompassionate.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
No, you're talking about a doctor's office nurse.
You're not.
I was a hospital nurse.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Ok, all right, so there's a difference.
Speaker 3 (03:59):
By the time, that nurse wasn't able to convince
you.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
now you're with me and now I'm going to have to be
nice to you, yeah, but we havesome great nurses the volunteer
Topeka Rescue Mission, one ofour- all-star heroes Sharon
Meisner, who's been thevolunteer leader of the clinic
for 30 some years.
I mean we have great nurses andwith Stormont Vale and our
access partnership and some ofour schools nurses.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
So we couldn't do any of what we do, and the
community would be at a completeloss if they did not have
nurses.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Yeah, so it's National Nurses Day.
Here on May the 6th it's alsoNational Creep Suzette Day Creep
Creep.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I don't think they're creepy, but they could be Creep
.
There you go.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
So what is that anyway Is?
Speaker 3 (04:39):
that pancake?
Oh, it's a pancake.
Okay, it's a French pancake,it's a.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
French pancake With some kind of sauce.
Okay, okay.
So, and it's also and LaManda'snot here today because she's
actually at a university, one ofreally important ones, called
Kansas State University, rightnow, for all the folks that love
Wildcats, so, but anyway, it'sNational Teacher's Day.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
And so LaManda's a former educator, and so we're
missing her on the podcast today, but she's there for a very
good reason at Kansas State.
So anyway, Miriam, those arethe really main things today.
Speaker 3 (05:10):
Those are the important things.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
Right, Then we've got some important updates, and
then we want to get to ourguests.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
Now today's been a really wonderful day and Josh
was there as well as a wholebunch of people on our team.
So there is a project calledRecycled Rides that's done by
Washburn Tech's automotivedepartment, and United Way is a
significant partner in that andwhat happens is that a car that
maybe had some issues or was inan accident or something like
(05:36):
that, and now the insurancecompany owns it, they donate
that car to Washburn Tech andthen the students and other
advisors like from Lewis, ToyotaCollision and all these
different kind of car folks yeah, the technical stuff you know
that, then come together to kindof guide those students in how
(05:58):
to repair this car and how toget it looking absolutely brand
spanking new.
And then what happens is theyput out applications or requests
for applications toorganizations like ours that we
can identify people that arereally in need of good
transportation, because we knowthe lack of transportation can
(06:19):
bring about incrediblechallenges.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
It can stop everything or it can help
accelerate the ability to moveforward, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Absolutely Well.
So this year we nominated oneof our facilities team members
that actually was just on apodcast not that long ago Chris
Harstadt, and he won.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
He won.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
They selected him.
So it is a group of studentsthat gets together the same
students that are working on thecar or somewhere in the
automotive department that cometogether to review all of the
different applications and makea decision on who they feel is a
good candidate for this vehicle.
This was car number 35 thatthey've done 35,.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
I was going to say I wonder if we know how long this
is going.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
It's been going on a long time and I believe this is
the second time or the thirdtime that somebody from TRM has
actually been awarded the carand it was wonderful to see
Chris and his son Drake.
Drake was so excited and thecar is beautiful and there's all
these people in the room and Ithink Chris was incredibly
(07:26):
overwhelmed by it all, and notin a bad way, but just such a
cool guy.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
He's such a cool guy.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
Right and Brett Martin talked about Chris and
was the one that introduced him,and Dr Mazacheck was there from
Washburn University.
There were just a lot of of alot of people that were there to
recognize the efforts of thestudents and also the ability of
Chris to potentially reallymove forward now in a different
(07:54):
kind of way and get into housingand all the things that can
come now because he hastransportation.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
Chris's story is he was living in a tent with his
son and finally knew it was timeto get out of there, ended up
in Topeka, came to the Topekarescue mission and had a big
decision to make, and this isall on the podcast that he
shared with us.
So it's nothing that we'resharing out of turn here, but he
ended up deciding if he wasgoing to keep his drugs on him
or throw him in the trash.
He threw him in the trash andnever looked back.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Never looked back.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
So now he's employed Topeka Rescue Mission has that
automobile Wants his son to beraised well yes, and he wants to
be a grandpa someday, yes, soyeah.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
It was a beautiful event, and the whole facilities
team was there, as well as someothers of us, and so it was just
a really special time.
Josh, do you know which numberpodcast that is?
Speaker 1 (08:41):
I don't, I can't remember.
Off the top of my head itwasn't too long ago.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
No, it was just four or five ago.
Yeah, we're 266.
But yeah, yeah.
So we'll post about the eventtoday, maybe link to the podcast
.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
So it was great it was, it was wonderful.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Well, we have a very special guest today who happens
to be a really cool friend ofmine that I've gotten to know
pretty well.
She, that I've gotten to knowpretty well.
She has a name, but I call herIdakann, and that is a
combination between Idaho andKansas.
Her name is Jessica Kroener andshe is the former CEO of the
Pocatello Rescue Mission.
Pocatello, Idaho had formerlybeen with the Boise Rescue
Mission Came here a couplesummers ago.
(09:22):
I think it was to visit TopekaRescue Mission.
So, Jessica, welcome to ourcommunity, our visit, Topeka
Rescue Mission.
So, Jessica, welcome to ourcommunity, our mission.
Speaker 4 (09:26):
Thank you, I'm glad to be here.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Yeah, so you are director of Street Reach now.
Some of us like to call itOperation Street Reach, but we
got rid of the Operation StreetReach.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
I had to throw it in.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
I had to throw it in.
Do not edit that out.
So where it started, we began aStreet Reach program here at
Topeka Rescue Mission, let's sayprobably 16 years ago somewhere
in that neighborhood.
15, 16 years ago we had notbeen out there to do that and we
began.
We've learned a lot of thingsand part of the learning process
(09:59):
was forced kind of our handduring the pandemic to create a
mobile access partnership calledMAP.
That's not Operation StreetReach, but we learned a lot how
to do that.
Because of that, you came tovisit that out of Pocatello.
Speaker 4 (10:12):
I did.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
So talk about.
We want to get current with you, but talk about what brought
you.
How'd you find out about Topeka, Kansas, from Idaho and what
brought you here to visit us?
Was it summer before lastSummer, before Two summers ago?
I don't know.
It's been a while In the recentpast.
It's been in the recent past.
It was in the summer.
Speaker 4 (10:32):
Yes, I believe it was in 2023, actually, and it was
in November.
So just at the end.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Oh, was it?
Was it November?
Yeah, okay, it was a warmNovember.
It was a warm November.
Speaker 4 (10:42):
I think it was like November 1st or something.
You guys were just on Halloweenand you guys were setting up
Christmas the next day.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
I was like we're full on in.
I was going to swear it waswarm out, okay, well, never mind
me.
So your name is Jessica, right,and you were originally in
Idaho, never mind.
So, jessica, why did you comehere?
How did you find out aboutTopeka, kansas?
You're out there working as anew director at the Polk Teller,
or fairly new in Idaho, and soyou came here why?
Speaker 4 (11:11):
I came here because I had met LaManda down in Florida
at the National City Conferenceand there was just kind of a
flag for her.
I didn't really introducemyself to her, I didn't do
anything, I just sat back andwent, okay, well, god, what's
next there?
And got back to Idaho andactually I was at Valley Mission
(11:37):
.
That's right, valley Mission, oh, okay, yeah, in Pocatello, okay
, and was sitting and we're justkind of figuring out programs
as we're trying to start up thismission and I was sitting and
we're just kind of figuring outprograms as we're trying to
start up this mission and I went, what about street reach?
And like everything cametogether that we didn't need to
go.
Most missions were going fromshelters to streets and it
(11:59):
occurred to us that we couldbuild from streets to shelter
and that there was a lot of goodin that for our neighbors and
for us, and so I said well,there's this person in Topeka.
So I got onto the Sege Networkand looked up LaManda and sent
her an email and she was likewe're about to shut it down for
(12:21):
the summertime because it wasgoing to be moving indoors.
So she was like come.
Come, now Come right now sobooked a ticket and I was here
the next week and sitting withyou guys and went out.
Speaker 2 (12:34):
Part of that CityGate network is rescue missions,
getting to go to conferences andmeet each other and that kind
of thing, and so you heard aboutit.
You came here and I know thatyou and I got a chance to visit
just a little while while you'rehere that time and uh, uh, mary
, I remember just saying man,this, this, this woman really is
full of the spirit of the Lord.
(12:54):
You know this this such aincredible um presence of Christ
in your life, and so um, we, we, we are always seeing that,
while you were here, Never knewyou'd be coming back, but
especially at this level.
So you got the chance to seethe Mobile Access Partnership
and you gleaned from there.
(13:15):
So what happened next?
Speaker 4 (13:17):
Yeah, I got to do Mobile Access.
I actually got to go and do anoutreach with Street Reach.
I went down on the north sideof the river and and did that
with them and so, um, I gleaneda lot from that, um, a lot of
different pieces that I couldtake back and, you know, some
different things that I altereda little bit but the bones were
(13:38):
all there and you guys handedover the bones pretty
straightforward and said stickyour name on it and go go do
your thing, I did I did and, uh,went back.
Um, I think the day I got back Ipitched it to my board and said
this is where I think we needto begin.
They approved it and, um, byjanuary, so about eight weeks
(14:01):
later, we were out on thestreets and I think it was May
of last year we started mobileaccess in Pocatello as well,
isn't that cool, it's incredible.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
So before Pocatello you were in Boise with the Boise
Rescue Mission.
That's a pretty well-developedrescue mission there.
It's nationally known.
What did you do there?
Speaker 4 (14:24):
So I was in their women and children's shelters.
Um, so I started in the Boisedowntown uh shelter, uh working
swing shift, and um then movedout to their Nampa location and
then kind of was between the twoas I as I needed.
Um, I had some different thingsgoing on in my world, so as
(14:45):
they began to watch God shiftingand moving me, they began to
pull me into that moreadministrative end, and so I got
to do a lot of data entry for awhile which was what I needed
just for myself in that time,and then, when I told them that
I had been offered a job to bethe executive director, they
(15:06):
pulled me in and they began tocoach me up.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Get you a little more ready for that next step.
Yeah, so what's the distancebetween Boise and Pocatello For
those that aren't acutelyfamiliar with Idaho?
Speaker 4 (15:18):
With Idaho, so Boise is.
Speaker 2 (15:20):
It's that funny state with that little smokestack on
top right.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
That's the one.
Speaker 2 (15:23):
Corbelina at the top right, Boise is on.
It's that funny state with thatlittle smokestack on top right.
That's the one, Corvallina, atthe top right.
Speaker 4 (15:25):
It's called the panhandle.
Yes, yeah.
So Boise is on the western,about an hour in from the
farthest west, and Pocatello isabout an hour in on the farthest
east.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Okay, so both sides, so you've got about a four-hour
drive between the two.
She had a lot of greatrelationships in Boise.
Still today, you got over inPocatello to really help them
get some foundational thingsestablished.
One of the things that I reallyappreciated is that you and I
got to meet each other when youwere here, whatever time of year
that was, and then we stayed incontact with each other CEO or
(16:01):
executive director to executivedirector and started talking
through stuff, and that was areal blessing for me, and so we
really weren't talking about youcoming to Topeka to be a part
of the Topeka Rescue Mission.
So what happened for you tothink maybe this is where you
wanted to apply to be thedirector of Street Reach?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
You know, it's interesting because when I came
to visit, I think I had been atValley Mission about six months
and I was like I started therein May and come over here to
visit.
And as I was pulling out oftown from visiting you all, I
just was crying and I felt theHoly Spirit just say are you
willing to come?
And I said yeah, I'll come.
(16:49):
But it didn't make any sensegiven that I had just started
this other position and as Iwalked out the next year, god
did a lot of good things where Iwas and I know that he planted
a lot of good seed.
And then I was in bed one nightasking him what next, and he
(17:12):
said to come to Topeka.
And so I opened my phone andlooked at it and we had the
director of street.
Reach was open and I had ameeting the next week already
set with Amanda, just to checkin and say hi.
And so I sent her a message atlike 3.30 in the morning and
(17:32):
said Well, she's probably up.
Could we move that up?
And I think the next day Ispoke with her on the phone and
said God's told me to shift andI'm thinking it's to Topeka.
And you said well, amanda justgot your message.
She's pretty excited about it.
And I waited a little bit.
(17:53):
I needed a minute to pray.
And I waited a little bit.
I needed a minute to pray.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
So it's a big decision for you.
I know that you have aconnection with the Lord and you
pray and you look for answersand you got a direction to come
here.
But then we hear those things,we understand those things,
however, we communicate with theLord, but to do them is another
thing.
And to actually pack up, moveclear to Kansas.
(18:17):
Do you like the beautifulmountains here, like you like
over in Idaho?
Speaker 4 (18:22):
This is like skiing territory.
It's the greatest thing.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Skiing for me, because I would never go down a
hill like that ever with snow onit and slippery and hit trees.
I mean ski Kansas right.
Snow on it and slippery and hittrees, I mean ski Kansas right.
So you know, being in Idaho Ithink much of your life and then
(18:47):
coming to Kansas, what was thatlike?
You knew the Lord wanted you tocome and so you came.
You're stepping out in faith.
How's that for a person?
I mean, there's been peoplethat experienced that.
I mean some people go to Africaor some people to stay in their
own home forever.
But you made a pretty bigdecision to leave the executive
director position to come workfor another rescue mission for
another executive director.
(19:08):
You had to know, really, thatyou know that that's what you're
supposed to do.
So did everything just kind offall into place real easy?
I mean, was it all smooth?
She's laughing.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
It was magical.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
It was like why I get to go beyond the streets in
Topeka, Kansas, where they'rereally hard to find the homeless
people anymore, because thecamps aren't together anymore.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
And it gets really cold and really hot.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Uh-huh yeah.
Speaker 4 (19:32):
Got a lot more bugs here and I think that night
before I messaged LaManda, Italked to.
God about tornadoes and I stillhave conversations with God
about tornadoes.
He didn't seem worried aboutthem.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
You mean, he wasn't really troubled by tornadoes.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
I think I'm there too .
I live in Kansas.
It's not, god forsaken?
Very true.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
It's God's country, so there's always an adjustment.
But I remember talking to youhere a number of months ago and
you said you really feel likethis was home now.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Definitely it was a big adjustment to feel um, not
surrounded by the mountains,because where I grew up they
were kind of in the distance alittle bit, but I mean you could
see them.
But then where I've lived as anadult, like I'm right in them,
whether that be in boiser andpocatello, I would sit in my
living room and just there's amountain sitting right there
yeah, just across the street andyou could go walk up it if you
(20:41):
so desired.
But I think there was like asense of safety and even when I
came and visited, I felt likethis is just open and there is
nowhere to run.
I mean, there's a lot of placesto run, but there's nowhere to
hide, it's just all hide, it'sjust all flat.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
It's just all flat.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
There's something.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
You don't realize that unless you go somewhere.
I remember going back east tovisit my daughter and family,
washington DC area and it'strees everywhere.
Get off the KCI and driving backto Topeka I'm going.
Man, this is the farm countryReally is.
It's just wide open space andbig sky, big sky, yeah Well, or
(21:21):
Montana, they call that big skycountry over there because
there's mountains and big sky.
So, jessica, the assignmentthat the Lord has given you to
work with the unshelteredobviously this wasn't a new
thing to you.
You'd been doing that in Idaho,been working in shelter and out
of shelter Is there a commonperson or a common situation,
regardless of where people arewhen they're unsheltered, that
(21:43):
you could help people tounderstand?
Is it different for peoplebeing unsheltered in Idaho
versus Topeka area, or is itpretty much?
You're seeing the same thingwhether it's in Boise, pocatello
or Topeka, in regards to justkind of who the people are?
Speaker 4 (21:59):
Interestingly enough.
I think there are some subtledifferences.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
When I was in.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
Boise and we would do counts and whatnot.
In the shelter, most of ourpeople were graduate college,
many of them with master'sdegrees.
That were homeless, that werehomeless them with master's
degrees.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
That were homeless.
That were homeless.
Speaker 4 (22:18):
Okay, that's interesting.
And just different lifesituations and we were surprised
.
I mean it wasn't everybody, butit was a larger percentage.
Moving across to Pocatello,many hadn't completed high
school.
Interesting, couldn't read atall, I mean just in the same
state.
How, how different that can be.
(22:40):
And then I feel like in topekathere's almost a mix of the two,
um, especially going fromstreets and now this last week,
getting some time to be in theshelter and help there, um
seeing kind of the differencebetween those populations within
the same, within the same city.
So, um, you know, obviouslywe're all human.
(23:01):
I think what struck me aboutrescue mission when I first
started was the veil between meand the guests that I serve is
nothing and it is only by gracethat I sit on this side of it so
true um, it's, it has nothingto do.
I mean, there are points where Ican look at somebody's story
and say it's horrific comparedto the story that I have, and
(23:23):
then there are times that I cansay my story is horrific
compared to somebody else's andit's all about other factors,
you know, um, how people areable to cope just a lot of
different things that go into it.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
There's a gentleman that I know over in Lawrence
Kansas who helps coordinate abreakfast program every morning
for the homeless and the peoplewho are struggling, and his
story was that his own son hadsuffered from a mental health
challenge and so they were ableto get his son services to be
(24:01):
able to get him back on theright road, and he said it can
happen to any family at any time.
He said so I'm here for thepeople who don't have a me.
Speaker 3 (24:10):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
I'm here for the people who don't have a me, and
so if we don't have thosesupport systems, then, whether
it's family or friends orwhatever, that thin veil could
result in nowhere to go.
And so, by virtue of that, godand community has come together
to create places like rescuemissions, to be that family to
help people through their time.
So there's some similarities,kind of blended here from what
(24:35):
you've experienced in Idaho ontwo different parts of the state
in regards to the kind ofexperiences, jessica, what I
don't know if this is the rightterm, but what draws you to work
with the homeless, what drawsyou to especially the
unsheltered?
Not everybody does this.
What Uh-huh it's the best thingever.
(24:55):
Not a long line of peoplestanding to say I want that job.
Not everybody does this.
What Uh-huh?
It's the best thing ever?
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Not a long line of people standing to say I want
that job.
You know, ever since I canremember when I was just tiny,
whether it was blowing outcandles on a birthday cake or I
would make up games, like when Ihad to take out the trash, like
(25:20):
throwing in the dumpsters, andif I hit it I got my wish right.
But every wish that I ever madewas that, um, everybody would
come to know Jesus and that theywould they would get to walk
with him, like that's alwaysbeen my heart.
And as I got, older, I knew that, um, I wanted to do mission.
What I didn't understand wasthat mission existed right here
at home.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
I thought that meant going abroad.
Speaker 4 (25:42):
And then I got old enough that I could do that and
that door didn't open for me fora number of different reasons.
And before I got into rescuemission, before I ended up at
Boise Rescue, I had just beenpraying and going God, you've
poured so much into me.
(26:05):
Now begin to pour me out ontoothers and initially before I
got to Boise Rescue, it was, youknow, a lot around the pandemic
and stuff and I just went outand mowed lawns and just joined
a mow crew and just went out andI was like measurable outcomes
in a day, like I had to help alot of jobs, including other
(26:27):
executive director positions,and I was just done and ready to
be away from people and just godo something that I could clock
in and measurable.
And so I'm out there mowingthese lawns and all these little
Sunday school songs God broughtback to me of like I can do all
things Because it's a hard work.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
It is like very exhausting.
Speaker 4 (26:48):
And I was out there with young men much younger than
I am.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
You were little kids then.
Speaker 4 (26:57):
Yeah, much younger than I am and I was out one
night and I asked God, like, isthis still where I'm supposed to
be?
And he said you can go, butcast your net wide.
And so the next day I spentpraying and then I resigned and
I cast the net wide and BoiseRescue popped up and I asked God
(27:17):
.
I said, okay, I'll do that ifyou keep it there for a month.
And I went on my way and amonth later I was there and so I
applied and they called me thatday which is why I said a month
and then with them, I said,okay, I want to clock in, I want
to clock out, I don't want tobe a manager.
(27:37):
And they let me do that for acouple months.
Speaker 2 (27:42):
That's where we get people in.
We go sure, that's no problem.
So you're a manager.
Speaker 4 (27:49):
But then God's just been so good in teaching me and
teaching me how to see the heartof individuals and how to have
my ear tuned to him to be ableto see that one that is in front
of me.
And you know, in shelter thatcan be really challenging,
because you've promised safetyto a hundred and some odd people
(28:09):
a night and um, depending onwhich facility you are in and
when we go the street.
It is a paradigm shift that Ireally enjoy, that I go to your
home and I respect you where youare and I build a relationship
there and I have a realrelationship with you there.
And then, whenever you come tomy home now you know that my
(28:33):
rules are not about my love foryou.
My rules are about the safetyof, not about my love for you.
My rules are about the safetyof everybody and my love for
everybody, but I can establishthat in your home first.
So that was kind of what drewme.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
I think that one of the things that we've come to
realize is the extreme value, ifwe're going to address chronic
homelessness, solve chronichomelessness, to have this, what
you've just spoken to, is to goto their home.
You call it their home.
Maybe a tent, maybe a car,maybe a lean-to, maybe a hole in
the ground, right, it's theirhome, to respect them in their
(29:12):
home, to show them love in theirhome, right there.
And then when they're ready tocome to your home, which is a
shelter or wherever it is, thenthe love is still there.
But now I showed you respect,show respect here.
I mean, that's huge, isn't?
Speaker 3 (29:25):
it.
It's huge, it's well.
Isn't it really the gamechanger, right?
You know we talk all the timeabout it really is about
relationship, and this, whatJessica is describing, is just
evidence of that.
Speaker 2 (29:39):
Yeah.
So, jessica, I think rightafter you came and joined the
team here and were leadingStraight Reach, we're having
some weather issues here, and soyou got to stay with the
homeless as their warmingcenters were opening up and
actually didn't get to go homeand one of the reasons for the
(30:00):
first winter vortex we had itwas too dangerous to go home for
people to drive, and so you gotimmersed right in it, didn't
you?
I did With the guests that werecoming in off the streets, who
were staying here for a periodof time and actually being here
and caught in the children'spalace.
So were things going throughyour mind like, hmm, we had snow
(30:22):
in Pocatello, but we didn'thave this?
Was there any time where youwere wondering if you made the
right decision?
Or were you pretty confident,since you heard the voice of the
Lord as you hear him, that thiswas the right thing?
Speaker 4 (30:35):
I think there have been many points along this that
I'm like okay, god, are we?
What are we doing?
Um, but he's been so clear, um,and he brings me back to it.
Even last week I was kind of ina moment and he had somebody
(30:56):
that I've never even met call meon the phone.
Say, your name popped out on alist and I need to call and I
need to pray for you.
And, um, I called him back andit was just like this.
This time has been, in someways, some of the most painful,
and yet, if there was ever atime that God was just screaming
(31:17):
out to me that he's there, Iwas thinking about it this
morning because when I wasgrowing up.
I trained dogs alive, trainedseeing-eye dogs and other
people's dogs, because theyfound, of course.
Speaker 2 (31:32):
Come fix my dog.
Speaker 4 (31:36):
And sometimes dogs are just like freaking out, and
in that moment I'll take them bythe collar and I get their eyes
and we just wait, and I waitfor them to just come and to
focus and I felt like so much ofthe time in the last six months
God's been like oh, he's hadyou by the collar, maybe more by
(32:00):
the cheeks, and just go and putyour eyes right here.
Speaker 1 (32:03):
Your eyes are right here.
Speaker 4 (32:03):
And they're not on any of the rest of it, and he
just calls me back to that placeand sometimes it's just in even
screaming out to me and beinglike be still, you are fine, be
still.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
This is a personal walk and journey with him that
you've just described to us.
How does that help you to dowhat you do with going out in
the streets to people's homespersonally, but how does it help
the person that you'reministering to Do you feel that
you've got that kind ofconnection with the creator of
the universe, who has told youthat he loves everybody?
Yeah, and some peoplemisunderstand or don't really
(32:41):
like people.
They don't understand, judgethem.
How does that help you to beable to help them?
This walk that you have withthe Lord?
Speaker 4 (32:50):
I think that he is well.
We know that he is the goodfather.
He tells us that he is a goodfather and going through this
experience and for it to be asuncomfortable when we ask our
neighbors to do something on thestreets or when we ask our
guests to do something in theshelters, we know it's
(33:12):
uncomfortable.
And in this whole season, whenI really boil everything down,
I'm like I'm uncomfortable andit's okay that I'm uncomfortable
for a while, because mydiscomfort right now is toward a
greater good and I can see that.
But I can see that because I'vewalked step after step after
(33:33):
step with the good father toknow that he knows and that that
temporary discomfort ends in aplace of blessing and abundance
that I wouldn't have experiencedhad I not walked through that.
So then, when I'm out and I amworking with the one who is in
front of me and I'm listening towhat the Holy Spirit's telling
(33:55):
me about that one, the goodfather is not asking all of them
to do the exact same thing.
It's not a black and whitesituation.
I can have some guidelinesabout what we'll do for safety
or for health, but when I lookat one and I say I just need you
to stand up today, becauseJesus won't even stand up for me
(34:19):
, and I need you just to beginwith standing and walking,
physically walking, and thatthat's the way that I can show
compassion and love toward you.
And then for another one thatis in a different spot and that
they need to know how to hold anappointment and to keep an
(34:41):
appointment and to followthrough on that appointment, and
I can work with them onincentivizing toward that in a
different way, I can havecompassion for both, because I
recognize that it'suncomfortable and in talking
with my team about that and thatit's not going to be this black
(35:01):
and white thing, what we'vetalked about is the good father
doesn't necessarily look at whatseems fair.
He looks at what is best for you, because you are the individual
that he is concerned about, andI told them like I think it's
helped because I was raised thatway.
My mom would be like you knowwhat it was?
(35:22):
My sister and I she's like youboth get things at times that
the other one doesn't get andyou both come out just fine.
There's not going to be a fair.
Sometimes you get something,sometimes you do.
We're not going to play thatgame.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Somebody one time said that God does not love us
all equally.
He loves us all uniquely timesay that God does not love us
all equally.
He loves us all uniquely and sohe loves, but he loves uniquely
and that's so.
Not every unsheltered, homelessindividual that you're
encountering needs the same kindof response as you mentioned,
even having somebody you know.
(35:58):
Let's stand up you know, becausesome people may be strung out
on drugs or maybe don't feellike they can do anything
anymore.
They're so depressed orwhatever.
No, let's, let's do the verybasic thing which makes them
uncomfortable.
That's going to be a littleuncomfortable for you at
sometimes, I would assume.
To take a risk to challengesomebody's uncomfortableness Is
that.
Is that ever a problem?
Speaker 4 (36:19):
Yes, yes.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
People who can't see.
Jessie, she's not real big andso you're very petite, and so
going into these homeless camps,do you ever be very concerned?
We know the potential ofviolence is all around us all
the time, regardless of where weare.
How do you go out there?
You're not like Mike Tyson so,and you're going and challenging
(36:45):
people's systems sometimes.
Speaker 4 (36:50):
I decided, actually, I think the day that I came and
visited and I was about to headout on streets I don't remember
exactly what was said, but therewas some agitation in the camps
and you guys had told me aboutthat and in my mind I thought I
wonder what my board's going tothink.
Because I'm thinking you'resupposed to stay alive if you're
(37:13):
the executive director, you'renot supposed to.
Speaker 2 (37:15):
You're supposed to visit.
I'll stay there forever.
Speaker 4 (37:18):
And I wasn't sure how much of a risk and I thought no
, it's my life, it's my choiceand I'll go out.
And in making that decision,the reality is that God is in
charge of my days and my comingand my going, and he has set me
in my time and place anduniquely designed me for this.
(37:43):
So I can make the decision andI've had the conversation with
my family of if the worst casehappens that I did what I loved
and I did it to the end.
So I wake up in the morning andI go out and I do what I love.
Speaker 2 (38:00):
So there's a piece in that that this is my assignment
.
This is what I'm going to do,mary.
You and I go out and I do whatI love.
So there's a piece in that thatthis is my assignment.
This is what I'm going to do,mary.
You and I have talked and otherpeople we've talked on.
The podcast is working at.
Speaker 3 (38:08):
Topeka Rescue.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Mission is not a job.
It's calling, without a doubt.
Without a doubt, you know itpersonally, josh.
You know it.
I've known people here.
If you don be, because it'shard, it's very difficult, it
can be dangerous, but it canalso be very rewarding.
If you know where you'resupposed to be and every day you
know this is God going to takeyou where he wants you to go and
(38:31):
utilize you to be able to helpthose who believe he doesn't
care or nobody cares to go there, because a lot of people won't
go do what you do.
They won't, they would say don'tdo it, but you do it and your
team does it.
Jessica, what is the hope thatyou have going forward?
(38:51):
We've had this continuedincrease nationally with people
who have no place to go.
Shelters are busting at theseams.
We have a recent uncertaintyabout these federal programs and
how they're going to beadjusting and shifting around in
regards to housing andopportunities.
We know that there's an agingpopulation of individuals who
(39:12):
are becoming homeless andfalling into the chronic
homelessness, and so you don'thave a very large team that you
work with, but you do intersectwith the law enforcement Topeka
Police Department, vallejo andothers.
What's your hope with this kindof flood or pending flood of
homeless that we need to bedoing to reach those who are
(39:35):
unsheltered now and to be readyfor the more that may come?
Speaker 4 (39:40):
You know, I believe that God is just doing a good
thing.
I believe that he's doing agood thing currently and that he
is doing a good work in hischurch and in his people right
now.
And we can begin to look at itall and we can look at numbers
and we can get all stressed outabout that, or we can look and
recognize that God is cleansinghis people and that he is
(40:03):
equipping his people and he'sdrawing his people back to what
he called them to.
In my perspective, the churchhanded over things that it never
should have handed over yearsago.
And at this point in time, thechurch is coming back to and
being called back to what it wasoriginally handed to manage.
(40:23):
And so, as I look at thecurrent landscape of things, I
actually feel incrediblyencouraged because I believe
that God is doing a good workand he is bringing back what we
were originally designed for andtaking us out of our comfort
zone and out of our buildingsand back into the lives of
(40:44):
people, because that's where twoor three are gathered, that's
where he is, it's not within afacility.
And while those facilitiesserve us and I have no judgment
toward that, I think for a whileit became a social club and the
church is losing its socialclub identity and coming back to
the heart of Christ.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
That's brave what you just said, but I think a lot of
people are realizing thatthere's kind of a remake of the
modern day church to be morequestioning, at least about what
its purpose is, and to when youstart to question what your
purpose is, you might get to theright conclusion.
And that is to be more activein community and helping.
(41:28):
And there's just a whole lotabout the poor and those who are
in need in the scripture.
I mean we can't get around that.
I mean it's not an option.
Some people cop out and sayJesus said the poor will always
be with you.
I remember Lynn Johnson, whowas director of Health and Human
Services, said yeah, but I wantto try proving wrong, so let's
go for it.
But that's a cop out just tosay they'll always be with us.
(41:51):
Because there's a whole lot moreto talk about those who are
following Christ and what we areto do to minister to those who
are in need.
And it's not just homeless,it's not just hungry.
It could be the neighbor orsomebody in your own family, or
your student in school, or yourteacher or the principal, or on
and on and on, or your coworker.
Is that we are supposed to belight in people's darkness.
(42:12):
And so well, jessica, I'm gladyou're here in Topeka.
And, yeah, so many positivereasons that you're here.
I think one of the biggest isnot only your passion for those
who suffer, but the Jesus thatyou bring with you here.
Is there anything else you'dlike to share today?
(42:33):
Um, on your very first Topekarescue mission podcast Won't be
your last.
Speaker 4 (42:39):
No, I think I'm good Okay.
Speaker 2 (42:41):
All right, well, thank you for being here.
Thank you for joining us today.
Thank you for listening to ourcommunity, our mission.
If you'd like more informationabout Topeka Rescue Mission, you
can go to trmonlineorg.
That's trmonlineorg, and you canfind about volunteer
opportunities, also someopenings for jobs which aren't
jobs, correct, correct.
(43:02):
Miriam had to fill thosepositions and if you've heard
anything today, you've heardabout a young lady who has said
yes to God, and it's okay for usall say yes to God because he
will take us to places thatmaybe we're uncomfortable, but
that's where we find the joy.
Thanks for listening.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.