After serving 24 years in the Army, including three combat tours, Ivan – like many veterans – had trouble adjusting to civilian life. “I was not doing well. I was down and out,” he recalls. Then he literally stumbled upon Raleigh Rescue Mission and began the first of seven “wonderful, beautiful months.”
As soon as Ivan came to Raleigh Rescue Mission, he signed up for the New Life Plan, our long-term residential recovery program. “It allowed me to stop, get my head out of the clouds and refocus,” he tells us. “The faith-based classes gave me a lot of perspective.”
Courses in the New Life Plan also offered Ivan the practical skills and resources he needed to get back on track. “Jobs for Life taught me what to wear, what to say, how to follow up. That sealed the deal,” he says. “I got a job and I got a savings account, all in seven months. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
Actually, Ivan found that it does get better! Today he also has a car and is on a waiting list for a place of his own. Best of all, he has reunited with his five daughters. “All those relationships are really good now,” he says with a smile.
Thanks to the New Life Plan, Ivan says, “I see things differently now. I tend to stop, think and then act. It’s a calmness that I never had before.”
Ivan also credits the Mission with renewing his faith. “My walk with Christ is amazing. It’s a work in progress. I learn new stuff every day. And I’m plugged in with a really nice church that feeds my soul.”
To friends like you who made his new life possible, Ivan says, “Whether you see it or not, you’re helping. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!”